I seem to be a magnet for people to say funny things to. These are my interpretations of what I think random people have said to me this month on the street, in the post office, and on the bus. They may or may not have lost
something in the translation.
- Is you sister alive? (about Lydia in the carrier-once to Micah, once to me: twice I was asked if my daughter was
living!) Two interpretations given by locals: a joke because she is so sweet
looking. iow – is she real? and secondly, she is so still, is she a baby doll?
-
Are
you watching them? Are their parents Turkish? At the park I was mistaken for
being the nanny. My tutor claims it is
because I look so young. I wonder if it’s because no moms are in the park with
their kids…it is only grandmas and nannies. Where are all the moms?
- So
sweet! May God protect him from evil. How old is he? This is often the chorus when strangers come
upon children. When I turned around to look, I was surprised to see two dog
owners having the conversation!
- (regarding
my kids) What brand? Upon many bewildered looks and much asking for
clarification, I learned this woman was asking what country we were from!
- Don’t even try! (to tell me your child is 10 months old. She has teeth! And
she’s so active/attentive…her eyes are following the conversation. Whoever is
talking, she is looking at them.) When do their kids get teeth??
- He, Lydia, must be a boy. She has no hair. Is this a joke or are they
serious? When I tried responding with the smiling comment, “yes she is growing
teeth, but she’s not growing hair” I didn’t get any laughs. I guess I need to
still work on my bilingual sense of humor.
