05/30/2016
Every time I bring my Mandarin speaking parents to a local western style restaurant, I encounter the same questions again and again. “What am I ordering? Do these dishes have Chinese names at all? What ingredients are in this dish? What is it going to be like if I order it? What is it called? Why do they cook it this way? ...”
Since my parents moved to Canada with me, I have been bombarded by their’ curious questions on a daily basis. I can see their eagerness to learn about their daughter’s new world and hope to become a part of it, but the language and cultural barriers are just too great for them to achieve it on their own.
Since I came to Canada nearly two decades ago, one great feature I love about Canada is the multicultural environment, the hub of different ideas and inventions. People from all over the world, regardless of skin color, social and religious backgrounds, age or gender, are able to cohabit peacefully and gracefully.
This environment can be even better if all people with different backgrounds were able to understood and appreciate each other’s cultures and enjoy them fully. In my opinion, this goal can not only be achieved, it can bring additional opportunities in our society. It is the mosaic culture that makes our environment more colorful and interesting. So I decided to use my linguistic ability to help my two worlds and to break the language and cultural barrier, so they can more easily understand and appreciate each other.
Icebreaker team, a group of enthusiastic language professionals, like myself, who dedicate their time and energy to help the Canadian multicultural society become more culturally integrated.
Gerrie Ying Wagner
-CEO
