After teaching many years in north Louisiana, we moved to Lafayette where I was hired at Coteau Elementary to teach sixth grade and where I would later become an OBC.
It is amazing how in one state there can exist such a chasm of cultural differences; not the least of which is language. I remember seeing a sign out in front of a crawfish restaurant whose slogan read "You Call - We Boil" and thinking, 'I don't get it, it doesn't rhyme...' only later to realize that when my Cajun friends read the slogan, it totally rhymed!
The language barrier became more evident when school started and I called roll on the first day. I had left behind north Louisiana Johnsons, Williams, and Risers for south Louisiana Babineauxs, Cheramies, and Viators. Students with the last name Trahan, which in West Monroe rhymed with "tray man", now rhymed with the bray of a donkey, "tro haw'. And to make matters worse, my new school served a Laotian community with the last names Phongvonsa, Vongphakdy, and Chanthavong! Needless to say, my mispronunciations were a steady source of entertainment for my students.
On Parent/Teacher Conference Day I realized that the language barrier could cause more of a problem than I realized. One of my Laotian students, Bane, had really been slacking. He was smart and very capable but for some unknown reason had just stopped trying. I was looking forward to discussing this with his parents. When they arrived for their conference, Bane and his two sisters came with them. (I was struck by how beautiful his little sisters were!) Bane explained that his parents might struggle with the language barrier and that he had come along to serve as a translator. Hmmm, I thought, this could be problematic, but he had always been honest and trustworthy so we just forged ahead.
Smiling, I started the conference with all the positive comments I had to make about Bane, he proudly translated, and his parents smiled and nodded. Next I launched into my concerns, Bane translated, and his parents smiled and nodded.......... the look on their faces never changing............ Something was not right.....
I looked at Bane.......
he smiled at me...........
hmmm....................
I started again, but this time I replaced my smile with an ugly frown, creased my brow, and squinted my eyes ominously. Shaking my head, I said, "Not working hard! Not working hard!"
Bane"s eyes widened, but to his credit he never dropped his smile. He started to "translate", but it was too late; his dad had caught on! He jumped up spilling a long diatribe in Laotian and although I didn't understand a word of it, the look on his face left no doubt that the gig was up and Bane was in hot water!!!
Feeling confident that I would be seeing an improvement in Bane's behavior, I wanted to try to lighten the mood and move to a more positive topic. Thinking that a compliment might do the trick, I said, "You have such beautiful daughters!" Bane translated and his father, pointing to the girls, replied, "This one, yes, but this one not so much." I was HORRIFIED!!!! That poor little girl!!! But then I noticed that the girls were smiling brightly, totally unfazed by what to me was a calloused comment, but to them was probably just a frank reply. Cultural differences........
We shook hands and they left. I plopped down heavily in my chair - worn out from my impromptu theatrical performance - and pondered how much I had to learn.
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| Laos coat of Arms |
Love ya'll, Shelli
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