Personal Narrative: The Five C's Of Communication

I entered the United States for the first time in 2009. I landed in Houston, Texas and began attending Lamar University in Beaumont, Texas. Being my first time in the States, I had never communicated with people whose first language is English. This was challenging at first, but once I got to know my teammates and the coach, we all accommodated to meet the five C’s of communication. The level of need I experienced was predicament because it was difficult communicating in English while making sure people understand me. According to Therapeutic Communications for Health Care, predicament is defined as “no easy solution.” The person in need “often feels trapped; is not helped by advice” (Tamparo & Lindh, 2008). When I began my journey with the Cross Country team at Lamar, they were all understanding and supporting of me since I was learning the language. They were patient by listening and respecting everyone’s decisions even when they were expressed differently. Many times our body language said more than our verbal communication; I learned how to listen to others by observing rather than by listening. However, in my experience, I felt trapped many times when I wanted to communicate about something and I did not know how to express myself.

We had girls from Sweden, Netherland, Poland, Kenya and guys from Uganda, Australia, Kenya and Belgium. We all had difficulties communicating, and this impacted our ability to clearly understand each other. However, we found ways to be clear and complete with each other through our body language and through our common interests. In addition, we were always together and got in-tune with each other’s facial expressions showing joy, and showing appreciation through hugs and encouragement during practices and races. Many times our love and understanding toward each other was seen in our nonverbal communication rather than verbal