Around 5 a.m. in an airport in Washington, D.C., a stranger started speaking to Megan Swanson (12) in Chinese. The man appeared to be requesting to borrow her phone, and she replied, in his language, that she did not speak Chinese, asking if he speaks English or French instead.

“What’s so great was that he understood me,” Megan said. “Then, this lady came up. They clearly knew each other, and he was able to figure out where he was supposed to go. He was very persistent in speaking Chinese to a person who clearly did not speak Chinese.”

This encounter further developed her desire to learn new languages.

“I want to be the person who hears someone struggling and trying to communicate with an English speaker and [say] ‘Hey, I speak that language. I can translate,’” she said. “Right now, I’m not proficient enough in any language except for French and English to do that, but someday I will be. I’m definitely working at it.”

Growing up in the Bay Area, Megan was exposed to different cultures surrounding her, but she never experienced them first hand in a foreign country.

“I really love learning about [and experiencing] different cultures,” she said. “For me, my gateway to becoming immersed in those cultures and being able to participate in those cultures is the language. I want to learn the language and communicate with people, understand people on more than just a language basis. Language will make me have a deeper understanding of who people are.”

Megan picked up French and Latin in school, while studying Italian outside of school. She began Latin in the tenth grade and French in the sixth.

“Languages aren’t just this foreign concept; they’re another way of talking to people,” she said. “I like the idea of the unknown, and I want to make it so that that unknown culture is known to me. I’m attracted to that mystery. I want to find it; I want to uncover it. If there was no unknown, I think I would just be bored. It excites me, and I want to discover what’s behind it.”

Judy Pan (12), one of Megan’s friends, knows of Megan’s pursuit of multiple languages.

“I think she also knows basic Spanish too because she’s just brilliant; it’s very amazing [and] difficult,” Judy said. “Megan is very passionate about learning languages. She wants to study [not just one] modern language in college. I support her very much. I even try to teach her words in Chinese.”

One of Megan’s friends worked for at the French Embassy in San Francisco and taught her that pursuing a career in languages does not necessarily involve becoming a teacher or a translator.
“Even though she seems like a mentor figure, she was more of a peer to me,” Megan said. “She’s more there to tell me about all these great experiences that you can have. She showed me that you can make a life out of languages. The opportunities are endless. I know I want to continue language in college. Really there’s no limit. If I have an opportunity to learn any language, I’m going to take it.”