I'll speak with you

I have recently met a very nice swing dancer from Australia. Being that he is from Australia it means he has a different accent and different mannerisms than what I'm used to when it comes to everyday speech. And I, being the observant person that I am, have noticed quite a few of them. For instance it's a car park... not a parking lot.

The one that really has stuck out though is whenever he talks about calling me or me calling him he always says "I'll speak with you..." Usually that wouldn't give anyone pause, but as we all know I'm a very unique individual. On the way home from dropping him off after dancing at Atomic I realized why I kept thinking about it!

I have always said/heard "I'll talk to you..." This is a one direction statement. It is the same as a note from high school, you write "TO:" and "From:" because in a note the person can't immediately reply to the person the note is from in the same form of the language. OR when you give a birthday present TO a person.

One of the dictionary definitions (the one that I felt applied best) of "to" is: "used as a function word to indicate movement or an action or condition suggestive of movement toward a place, person, or thing reached"

One of the dictionary definitions (the one that I felt applied best) of "with" is: "used as a function word to indicate combination, accompaniment, presence, or addition"

Keeping that in mind think about the statement, "I'll speak with you." I'm now being included. Isn't that one of the greatest human desires to be included?! When it was said to me it made me feel that I and what I had to say was just as important to him as himself or what he has to say. It is something that I haven't felt from a lot of people in my life.

I am just really impressed that a single word could technically change the meaning of a sentence to make it more respectful, more inclusive, and more friendly. I am even more impressed that people actually have another person's feelings (whether consciously or unconscious) in mind while saying something so simple as "I'll speak with you."