GRACIELA KARAS
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Like magic beads, we string together words to communicate our thoughts and feelings. I grew up in a home where the beads came in five different languages: Spanish, English, Portuguese, French and German (the last one, only my dad spoke).
My story begins in Buenos Aries, Argentina. I was fortunate to be born into a multiethnic, and multilingual family. Dad was a journalist and international correspondent, and mom was a student of languages. They were porteņos, who sang tangos while dusting the house, or listened to waltzes while cooking asado. Lyrics and historical facts were explained, while grocery shopping. Whenever I was hoarse, they'd say I was a mute, like the "Penado 14" ("Convict Number 14") from the 1920's tango, sung by Agustin Magaldi. I was eight years old, when we moved from the Porteņa city to Flushing, Queens, in New York City. The public school system prepared me to read, write, speak, and think, like a native New Yorker. Upon graduating John Bowne High School, I entered the field of communications, by way of the family business. My parents published a monthly magazine and produced a weekly radio show, for the Argentine community living in the New York tri-state area (defined as New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut). Later, I was drawn by the allure of the porteņo lifestyle in Buenos Aries. I dreamt about having coffee till dawn at its famous cafes, and holding never-ending chats with friends along Corrientes Avenue. For this simple, but meaningful reason alone, I moved back to Buenos Aires. Not only did I become enchanted by the city and its uniqueness, but I also found love, marriage, and my way back home. Professionally, I have been serving as Legal, Compliance and Idioms officer of foreign, and domestic institutions. I became an attorney, because it is my belief that even one of us, can make the world more just. To that end, on a personal note, my home and time is available to young people in need, abandoned dogs, and people who have gone astray, while learning Castillian and English. As language advisor, while pursuing a degree in Public Translation of English, I enjoy the opportunity to share my multilingual background, and to help people and cultures come closer together. I have approached the poetic language of tango with deep admiration for its often wise, and moving lyrics...magic beads strung together with heartfelt emotion. Not to mention the absolute beauty of watching skilled dancers gliding across the floor, floating intertwined. One thinks of the distant predecessors of the tangueros, the docks of Marseille, the historic port of Buenos Aires, and the dances in shady corners held, when tango was still a forbidden pleasure. In that spirit, I welcomed the chance to work with the founders of Talk Tango, in the marvel of expressing themselves in English and Castillian Spanish, as spoken in Argentina. |