You ever seen a world die? -
It's happening before our very eyes
Nothing is sacred even the tongue get gentrified
Shame is a colloquialism of genocide
Remember when for speaking
Mother tongue people got penalised
Legacy and tradition elders have memorised
Ain't cool enough for kids these days to recognise
Motherland, Mother Tongue, a man can fantasize
Hold on, may the culture be strong, Aquemini
Whispered in the shadow of oppression to survive
A heavy price was paid, the cost was their lives
Now we dumb it down, centuries simplified
If we had another chance would we press rewind
My pride too real, it rarely get televised
A burden is a blessing, a lesson that's set aside
Speaking to the next generation I emphasize
For you to carry the weight, you need to exercise
Ya Mother Tongue
I don't want to lose you
I don't want to lose you
I don't want to lose you
I don't want to lose you
Coz you mean too much
Said you mean too much
Conversations with my grandmother would comfort me
I'd reply in our mother tongue uncomfortably
She'd laugh, unaware of the shame kept underneath
The process of losing it wasn't done consciously
My language, words I spoke so beautifully
There was kids competitions held by the community
I got pictures standing on podiums that you should see
Fast forward 5 years and I lost my fluency
I remember back when I was kicking it in school
At that age speaking ya language wasn't cool
If you stood out they'd make you feel like a fool
The pressure from your peers is very powerful
Now it's a slow journey, I'm just trying to relearn
Hoping that one day the spirit of it returns
The ancestors reaching, they just want to be heard
Cherish the vocab, grateful for each word
I don't want to lose you
I don't want to lose you
I don't want to lose you
I don't want to lose you
Coz you mean too much
Said you mean too much
This Punjabi language is amazing. I say to the children:
You can obtain anything in these countries
But you cannot sit in the lap of your Mother Tongue.
In the lap of your Mother Tongue sit the great
Learned intellectuals and scholars such as Bhai Vir Singh.
When you read the beautiful words of
Bhai Vir Singh: (reads a quote from a Bhai Vir Singh poem),
You will realise that you will not be
Able to accurately translate the essence of his words.
And so I ask, will you ever obtain that in English?
No.
You never will.
I don't want to lose you
I don't want to lose you
I don't want to lose you
I don't want to lose you
Coz you mean too much
Said you mean too much