Cynthia Simmonds (December 21, 2011)
The setting: The family car. We are travelling to gymnastics on a rainy, Tuesday night. Christmas carols are playing on the car radio.
The cast: Mom and dad are in the front seat and Katie and Nick are in the back in their respective car seats. Simultaneously we hear Katie and Nick bellowing at the top of their voices:
Katie:
Tóu, jiān, xīgài hé jiǎo, xīgài hé jiǎo
Tóu, jiān, xīgài hé jiǎo, xīgài hé jiǎo
Yǎnjīng, bízi, zuǐ ba, hé ěrduo
Tóu, jiān, xīgài hé jiǎo, xīgài hé jiǎo
(“Head, shoulders, knees and toes, knees and toes. Head, shoulders, knees and toes, knees and toes. Eyes, nose, mouth and ears. Head, shoulders, knees and toes, knees and toes” in Mandarin.)
Nick:
“Cara, cabeza, cara, cabeza, manos, pies, manos, pies.
Ojos y orejas, boca y los dientes, Y la nariz, y la nariz.”
(“Face, head, face, head, hands, feet, hands feet. Eyes and ears, mouth and teeth, and the nose, and the nose” in Spanish.)
Seriously, they are going to give me a headache! I think about turning up the Christmas carols—but would that actually help? They continue—even louder:
Katie (trying to drown out Nick):
Tóu, jiān, xīgài hé jiǎo, xīgài hé jiǎo
Tóu, jiān, xīgài hé jiǎo, xīgài hé jiǎo
Yǎnjīng, bízi, zuǐ ba, hé ěrduo
Tóu, jiān, xīgài hé jiǎo, xīgài hé jiǎo
Nick (trying to drown out Katie):
Cara, cabeza, cara, cabeza, manos, pies, manos, pies.
Ojos y orejas, boca y los dientes, Y la nariz, y la nariz.”
Ed (looking toward me): “You know, our kids are singing in two different languages—neither of which is English!
I smile back and nod.
In the spirit of the holidays, I am going to look at the blessings in my life. I am very lucky to be able to provide my children with exposure to two (not just one) languages in addition to their native English. Yes, their loud singing—which sometimes digresses into shouting—may give me a headache. We may have arguments over which Language Stars language/song we should listen to next. But yet I am truly blessed.
Have a wonderful and safe Holiday season! I’ll “see” you next year!
--Cindi
