when speaking to someone with an accent

i accidentally/empathetically pick it up

without even realizing it

maybe kind of trying to meet them halfway

but it doesn’t sound like the real accent

 i find myself kind of stuck in an in-between zone.

when i was in austraila

many people guessed that i was canadian

my accent had become a mashup

of american english blended with an aussie-ish sound and a bit of slang thrown in.

 people have told me for years

 when i answer my phone

that i have a lilting accent

 with some sort of an undefined european sound to it

‘allo…’

 they are sometimes taken aback for a minute

‘is this beth?’

‘oui, why do you ask?’

 

—

“i subconsciously mimic whomever I’m talking to,

so I’ve been mistaken for a canadian, a south american, and somebody from the west country.”

-chloe pirrie, scottish actress

 

 

 

 

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photo credit: ruby lane