My Speech Impediment

I don’t know if you can hear it anymore, but when I was a kid, I had trouble saying my R’s. They kinda came out with an L sound. So “roll the log” would sound a little like “loll the log.”

I remember in the first grade and after, being taken out of class and brought to a tiny room - a repurposed closet perhaps - and practicing my R’s.

I guess the good news is, I got over it, I learned how to shape and place my tongue and mouth so my Rs sound like Rs now. But, I do still wonder if I slip up sometimes. It’s hard to hear yourself as others do - and for most of us, it’s unpleasant too. 

Both my boys had issues with speech as well. My oldest, spoke with what sounded like a serious Brooklyn accent. We used to kid around that when said the names of two Boston sport stars of his childhood - Oil Can Boyd and Larry Bird, they sound like they had the same last name. It came out like Larry Boyd. He never went to speech therapy and now speaks with a wicked Boston accent. Go figure.

My youngest, did go to speech therapy. His L’s sounded like W’s. His second grade teacher asked to meet with us because, when he got frustrated in his work, he would often mutter under his breath, “I hate my wife.” The teacher was concerned that he was mimicking me and there might be serious issues at home. She calmly explained her concerns in the most empathetic and sympathetic way - gently inquiring if everything was okay at home. There was a moment of silence as my wife and I stared at her, then each other, then back at her. You should have seen the look on her face we burst out laughing!  Of course, he was really saying in his L-sounds-like-W way; “I hate my life.” Which is a whole different thing.

He did end up getting speech services and now his L’s and W’s sound just the way they should.

It kind of reminds me of President Biden. He grew up with a stutter and still reaches out to young people who stutter and talks to them about his experience and how he learned techniques to reduce its occurrence.

I guess my point is; you never really know what’s going on with someone or what they’ve been through. You can never go wrong being kind and giving people the benefit of the doubt. And if they occasionally mutter “I hate my wife,” gently ask them if there is any way you can help.