--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I think there are things I can't write in…" description: "\"I think there are things I can't write in English that I wish I could write in Khmer.\" — Chath Piersath" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/68a/chath-piersath-12764_i-can_i-think-there-are-things-i-can-t-write-i_2111515.jpg" --- # I think there are things I can't write in English that I… ![“I think there are things I can't write in English that I wish I could write in Khmer.” quote by Chath Piersath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/68a/chath-piersath-12764_i-can_i-think-there-are-things-i-can-t-write-i_2111515.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/68a/chath-piersath-12764_i-can_i-think-there-are-things-i-can-t-write-i_2111515.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/68a/chath-piersath-12764_i-can_i-think-there-are-things-i-can-t-write-i_2111515.jpg) > “I think there are things I can't write in English that I wish I could write in Khmer.” [Chath Piersath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chath-piersath/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker feels limited by English and wishes to express thoughts in Khmer, highlighting linguistic and cultural gaps. **In simple terms:** Desire to write in native language. Key Takeaway Explore writing in Khmer. Themes language identity expression Mood reflective hopeful Type personal cultural When to use this quote - creative writing - personal journaling - language learning - cultural storytelling Key Concepts bilingualism cultural preservation Questions to Reflect On - How would writing in Khmer change your voice? - What barriers prevent you from writing in Khmer? A Different Perspective English may still dominate publishing opportunities. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Wish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wish/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [Sometimes I fantasize about learning to write in Khmer. Because if I could write in Khmer, my perspective would be very different, because I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chath-piersath/sometimes-i-fantasize-about-learning-to-write-in-khmer-because-if-i/) [Chath Piersath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chath-piersath/) > [“To survive during the Khmer Rouge, you had to steal, cheat, lie, point fingers at others, even kill. And now you are ashamed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-brinkley/to-survive-during-the-khmer-rouge-you-had-to-steal-cheat-lie-point/) [Joel Brinkley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-brinkley/) > [In Khmer we have a saying that when one is both quite sick and old there remains only one thing, that you die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pol-pot/in-khmer-we-have-a-saying-that-when-one-is-both-quite-sick-and-old/) [Pol Pot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pol-pot/) > [The Khmer Rouge tried to delete everything. They tried to erase our past, our personality, our land, our sentiment. What we tried to do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rithy-panh/the-khmer-rouge-tried-to-delete-everything-they-tried-to-erase-our/) [Rithy Panh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rithy-panh/) > [From 1975 to 1979 - through execution, starvation, disease, and forced labor - the Khmer Rouge systematically killed an estimated two million Cambodians, almost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/loung-ung/from-1975-to-1979-through-execution-starvation-disease-and-forced/) [Loung Ung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/loung-ung/) > [The Khmer Rouge can't destroy me. I still have my imagination and am capable of making films. I am not locked up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rithy-panh/the-khmer-rouge-can-t-destroy-me-i-still-have-my-imagination-and-am/) [Rithy Panh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rithy-panh/) > [Eventually I would like to reach the stage where I don't have to write about love and kisses and all that stuff. I wish…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-burdon/eventually-i-would-like-to-reach-the-stage-where-i-don-t-have-to/) [Eric Burdon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-burdon/) > [That is one more reason why I write in English only right now. I prefer writing in the language I hear around me for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuriy-tarnawsky/that-is-one-more-reason-why-i-write-in-english-only-right-now-i/) [Yuriy Tarnawsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuriy-tarnawsky/) > [It's difficult for me to write in English as it's not my first language, but French is even worse because of my father's influence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-gainsbourg/it-s-difficult-for-me-to-write-in-english-as-it-s-not-my-first/) [Charlotte Gainsbourg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-gainsbourg/) > [Our everyday language has become encumbered, Germanic, artificial, bureaucratic, inorganic. It may not be exaggerated to say that by now American writers face but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lukacs/our-everyday-language-has-become-encumbered-germanic-artificial/) [John Lukacs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lukacs/) > [I write in English because I was raised in the States and educated in this language.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-alarcon/i-write-in-english-because-i-was-raised-in-the-states-and-educated-in/) [Daniel Alarcon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-alarcon/) > [“It does not matter what you write in English nobody has understood it anyway.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/santosh-kalwar/it-does-not-matter-what-you-write-in-english-nobody-has-understood-it/) [Santosh Kalwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/santosh-kalwar/) > [The New York Times is the worst in that hardly anybody can write English over there. Most of it reads like slight translations from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/the-new-york-times-is-the-worst-in-that-hardly-anybody-can-write/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [I think I am less self-assured when I write English than I would be if I were writing in my first language. I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-begley/i-think-i-am-less-self-assured-when-i-write-english-than-i-would-be/) [Louis Begley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-begley/) > [I cannot write in English, because of the treacherous spelling. When I am reading, I only hear it and am unable to remember what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/i-cannot-write-in-english-because-of-the-treacherous-spelling-when-i/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) ## More by Chath Piersath > [Art is really about how you capture different things you see around you and bring them into forms and words and shapes and meaning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chath-piersath/art-is-really-about-how-you-capture-different-things-you-see-around/) [Chath Piersath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chath-piersath/) > [When you make art, those things change shape into something else. It's transformation into a body of different visual elements.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chath-piersath/when-you-make-art-those-things-change-shape-into-something-else-it-s/) [Chath Piersath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chath-piersath/) > [Often when people tell their story, they talk about their strengths and resiliency. It's really about their determination and their aspiration to survive and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chath-piersath/often-when-people-tell-their-story-they-talk-about-their-strengths/) [Chath Piersath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chath-piersath/) > [I think every writer has their waves of inspiration and their ways of doing things. But writing is very difficult for me. It's something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chath-piersath/i-think-every-writer-has-their-waves-of-inspiration-and-their-ways-of/) [Chath Piersath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chath-piersath/) > [Whether I affect one person or an entire family, or even a group of people, I feel like I have resources and education and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chath-piersath/whether-i-affect-one-person-or-an-entire-family-or-even-a-group-of/) [Chath Piersath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chath-piersath/) > [I used to despair about the condition of the world, to feel a sense of hopelessness; now I find more and more that I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chath-piersath/i-used-to-despair-about-the-condition-of-the-world-to-feel-a-sense-of/) [Chath Piersath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chath-piersath/) > [Even if you look in the dictionary you know the meaning of the word or phrase, but there's still the feeling of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chath-piersath/even-if-you-look-in-the-dictionary-you-know-the-meaning-of-the-word/) [Chath Piersath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chath-piersath/) > [When you're reading from a different language that's different from your own, it's not the same as being fluent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chath-piersath/when-you-re-reading-from-a-different-language-that-s-different-from/) [Chath Piersath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chath-piersath/) > [I have some advantages of viewing from the two lenses, the two perspectives. I think that a lot of visual artists who come back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chath-piersath/i-have-some-advantages-of-viewing-from-the-two-lenses-the-two/) [Chath Piersath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chath-piersath/) > [ You have to experiment with different mediums and things around you \[making art\]. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chath-piersath/you-have-to-experiment-with-different-mediums-and-things-around-you/) [Chath Piersath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chath-piersath/) > [The family I grew up in had three generations of widows.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chath-piersath/the-family-i-grew-up-in-had-three-generations-of-widows/) [Chath Piersath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chath-piersath/) > [I tried to write poems in rhyme. I tried writing songs. Sometimes I jotted down a thought. I would keep a log of spontaneous…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chath-piersath/i-tried-to-write-poems-in-rhyme-i-tried-writing-songs-sometimes-i/) [Chath Piersath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chath-piersath/) > [ This is my first collaboration \[with Mary Hamill\] so I'm going to learn how it's going to work. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chath-piersath/this-is-my-first-collaboration-with-mary-hamill-so-i-m-going-to-learn/) [Chath Piersath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chath-piersath/) > [I think every person has a unique story to tell and we each have the different life events that happen to us and sometimes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chath-piersath/i-think-every-person-has-a-unique-story-to-tell-and-we-each-have-the/) [Chath Piersath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chath-piersath/) > [I'm doing a collaborative project with another artist, Mary Hamill. My project is to gather the oral history of war widows, starting with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chath-piersath/i-m-doing-a-collaborative-project-with-another-artist-mary-hamill-my/) [Chath Piersath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chath-piersath/) [Explore all 53 Chath Piersath quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chath-piersath/) ## More I can quotes > [Only within yourself exists the other reality for which you long. I can give you nothing that has not already its being within yourself.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/only-within-yourself-exists-the-other-reality-for-which-you-long-i/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [My team mates are fundamental for my characteristics, if they send in crosses I can play inside the area.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/filippo-inzaghi/my-team-mates-are-fundamental-for-my-characteristics-if-they-send-in/) [Filippo Inzaghi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/filippo-inzaghi/) > [I can skate beautifully. While performing on ice I always try to please the audience and to win as well. Being artistic is very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evgeni-plushenko/i-can-skate-beautifully-while-performing-on-ice-i-always-try-to/) [Evgeni Plushenko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evgeni-plushenko/) > [I love playing for my country, getting the support. Especially for the kids and everybody, showing my example of what I can achieve so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-sharapova/i-love-playing-for-my-country-getting-the-support-especially-for-the/) [Maria Sharapova](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-sharapova/) > [I always step on the plane with my right foot and touch the outside of the plane with my left hand. Sometimes you know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hope-davis/i-always-step-on-the-plane-with-my-right-foot-and-touch-the-outside/) [Hope Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hope-davis/) > [From as long as I can remember, I was always fond of drawing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/st-lucia/from-as-long-as-i-can-remember-i-was-always-fond-of-drawing/) [St. Lucia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/st-lucia/) > [I don't want to be famous famous. I'm happy on the second tier, where I have autonomy on a professional level but I can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-reece/i-don-t-want-to-be-famous-famous-i-m-happy-on-the-second-tier-where-i/) [Gabrielle Reece](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-reece/) > [It's very easy to fool yourself that you're working, you know, when you're really not working very hard. I mean, I'm very lazy. So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-caro/it-s-very-easy-to-fool-yourself-that-you-re-working-you-know-when-you/) [Robert Caro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-caro/) > [From my experience of having served for 3000 days, I can say that anything can be achieved.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/narendra-modi/from-my-experience-of-having-served-for-3000-days-i-can-say-that/) [Narendra Modi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/narendra-modi/) > [I can still function when I don't have that balance I crave. I had a tendency to be precious about acting, thinking of it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-regan/i-can-still-function-when-i-don-t-have-that-balance-i-crave-i-had-a/) [Laura Regan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-regan/) > [I take the responsibility of playing another ethnicity very, very seriously, and I promise myself and those people that I will represent them with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cliff-curtis/i-take-the-responsibility-of-playing-another-ethnicity-very-very/) [Cliff Curtis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cliff-curtis/) > [I can't say that there are 'things' that make me come alive. There are thoughts that make me come alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-williamson/i-can-t-say-that-there-are-things-that-make-me-come-alive-there-are/) [Marianne Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-williamson/) > [I'm Catholic and I can't commit suicide, but I plan to drink myself to death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/i-m-catholic-and-i-can-t-commit-suicide-but-i-plan-to-drink-myself-to/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [I remember my friend Johnny von Neumann used to say, 'with four parameters I can fit an elephant and with five I can make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/enrico-fermi/i-remember-my-friend-johnny-von-neumann-used-to-say-with-four/) [Enrico Fermi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/enrico-fermi/) > [I recognize I am essentially a failed human being in the sense that I can't possibly live up to the expectations of an Almighty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/i-recognize-i-am-essentially-a-failed-human-being-in-the-sense-that-i/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) Browse all 24,836 I can quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I think there are things I can't write in English that I wish I could write in Khmer.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Chath Piersath" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chath-piersath/i-think-there-are-things-i-can-t-write-in-english-that-i-wish-i-could/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "I can" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chath-piersath/i-think-there-are-things-i-can-t-write-in-english-that-i-wish-i-could/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/68a/chath-piersath-12764_i-can_i-think-there-are-things-i-can-t-write-i_2111515.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/68a/chath-piersath-12764_i-can_i-think-there-are-things-i-can-t-write-i_2111515.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/68a/chath-piersath-12764_i-can_i-think-there-are-things-i-can-t-write-i_2111515.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I think there are things I can't write in English that I wish I could write in Khmer.” — Chath Piersath", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Chath Piersath", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chath-piersath/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I think there are things I...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chath-piersath/i-think-there-are-things-i-can-t-write-in-english-that-i-wish-i-could/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chath-piersath/i-think-there-are-things-i-can-t-write-in-english-that-i-wish-i-could/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```