Friday, August 15, 2008

Wonderful Welcome





When I finally made it to the Jencquels, I joined them in a wonderful meal--abundant, delicious and healthy. From then on we spent every waking moment catching-up, sharing our lives, enjoying, singing and laughing together!


Dora Saldaño was only a name from my distant past, now a dear friend and soul sister. We discovered so many common themes in our life stories. She remembered far more about our childhood and youth acquaintance and regaled us with many stories.


We first met at church camp, Dora from the Río Cuarto congregation and I from Don Bosco, Buenos Aires. She studied in the Bible Institute in Almafuerte and later was a nursing student at the Brittish Hospital in Buenos Aires. She often spent her days off with our family.


Erni, her husband, is a retired sheep rancher of German heritage. I practiced my rusty German on him and wrote down many interesting sayings. (For readers who may enjoy them I will add a few below.)

He also loves Argentine folk music. They call him "el rubio que canta criollo" like a blond gaucho (Argentine cowboy).

Man wird alt wie eine Kuh
u. lernt immer noch was dazu.

("One ages like a cow, but one never stops learning.")

Das Geld stinkt
aber es beruhigt.

("Money stinks, but it sure puts your mind at ease.")

Mann kann nie wissen
wie die Fische pissen.

("It is impossible to know how members of the class teleostiae discharge their metabolic waste products." [as per German expert comment below. Thanks, I could never have come up with that!])

A language funny:

--How do you do? (sounds like a form of the German verb hauen)
--Hau du dich selbst! ("Clobber yourself!")

It is my prayer today that my brother Ivan and SIL Kim have a safe trip today and receive a wonderful welcome to their new home--Carlos Paz, Córdoba, Argentina!

3 comments:

  1. Hey Rita:
    The first one should probably "Man" rather than "Mann."
    Trl: One ages like a cow, but never stops learning."
    "Money stinks, but it sure puts your mind at ease."
    The last one:

    ReplyDelete
  2. woops!
    Blogger always confuses me.
    Here's what it should have said:
    Great sayings.
    In the first one, the German probably should be "man" rather than 'Mann."
    More fluid translation:
    "One ages like a cow, but one never stops learning."
    "oney stinks, but it sure puts your mind at ease."
    "It is impossible to know how members of the class teleostiae discharge their metabolic wast products."
    I didn't know you kept a running blog. It'll definitely on my regular list.
    Win

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thank you, William of Baskerville!
    I have made the necessary corrections to the blog.

    ReplyDelete

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