Be Proud of Your Voice

Due to my shyness and introversion, it's always been a bit difficult to make friends. When I was younger, I spent the majority of my time with family with a few friends sprinkled in between. I grew up watching movies with my dad and younger siblings, and I have fond memories of us all gathered together for a Harry Potter movie with popcorn and soda. I think, though, that perhaps an unexpected outcome was born out of my years watching dozens and dozens of films—my accent doesn't sound right.

I've been told since the age of 15 that I don't sound like where I'm from. When I hear myself in a video, I don't think I sound all that different. I sound American, and likely from the West Coast (sadly due my use of using the word "like" more often than I should). My voice is light, soft, and a bit childish, I think (when I speak on the phone to someone I don't know, I try to make myself sound older by lowering my voice and not sounding like I've just inhaled helium). But no matter how much I think I sound like where I'm from, everyone else—including people from other countries—have commented that my accent doesn't sound like I'm from Orange County.

I did my master's in London, then spent a year in Paris learning French. I don't know if this maybe aggravated my "lost accent syndrome", because since then, I get consistent comments from strangers saying I don't sound like I'm from here. It baffles me because I genuinely don't know why. Both my parents are American and grew up majorly in Southern California, as well as my stepdad; I too grew up majorly in Southern California with the exception of being born in Portland and spending 4 years in Colorado. If I had non-American parents, sure, I could see why my accent may be a little off. But that's not the case. So why the hell do I sound so different?

I've been watching videos on linguistics to try and find an answer. These linguists make all kinds of sounds English speakers make, as well as sounds in Eastern and African languages. It's all fascinating to hear that pretty much every human sound has a name and history, but it hasn't given me much help in figuring out my own accent. Go figure.

The positive in all this is that is creates a bit of mystery in my otherwise very bland identity (white girl from Orange County, pretty basic). Not sounding like I'm from here automatically starts a conversation and keeps it going, and it's even better when the person I'm talking to isn't from here. It creates something interesting about me, and I'm not all that interesting or extraordinary to begin with—so it's a win for me!

I absolutely love hearing people's accents because it tells a part of their story. Whether it's a kind of British, Scottish, or Irish accent; Australian; Canadian; Eastern European—I love them all. They offer a glimpse into that person's upbringing and life experience that could be so very different from my own. It reminds me how beautifully diverse the world is and how lucky we are when we do meet someone from another country; just think, a century ago we would have had to travel by boat for weeks to visit the other half of the world.

So, whatever you sound like, embrace it. Love your accent; the way you talk; your mannerisms and slang; all of it. It makes you you, and that itself will be interesting to anyone you meet who's outside of your culture. Even if I think my American accent is boring and dull, British people I've met have said they loved it—and that always made me smile.

There is power in your voice; use it well.