Pure expression or translation difficulties
I’ve avoided writing sappy entries about how everyone in Thailand is SOO loving and SOO friendly . . . well not everyone is, but a lot of people, students here and at other schools and strangers do seem to be genuinely sweet. Recently two people have surprised me and so now I’ll write that entry.
Yesterday as I was washing my plate, a highschool student whom I’ve barely spoken to asked “when are you coming [going] home?”
“two weeks” I replied.
“We will miss you” she said.
“We will miss you too, I really love the whole admosphere here and all our you”
“Will you come back?” she asked
“I hope too, but can’t be sure” (they have a one year advanced diploma course that part of me is considering, and they are planning a masters and PhD program)
“Do you promise”
“uhh, no I can’t promise because of Sathya (truth) but I will try”
“okay, never mind (meaning don’t worry about it)” I hope you do.”
There are constantly foreign students coming in, so it’s not like she just thought I was some sort of novelty, but just genuinely expressed a feeling of connection.”
Secondly, today i was walking the back way home, which winds through some cane fields and small shacks. I’m always a bit on guard this way, dogs sometimes bark at us, and I don’t know how the local people perceive us. Still, I’ve found that even a sterned face cane-cutter or cattle herder will smile if I fold my hands, smile and say
“sawadeeka” they will respond well. So, I saw a darkly-clothed figure (whom i think is one of the herders i often pass, but she was far away so it’s hard to say), and did that and to my surprise she called out —
“I love you.” This caught me totally off guard, I was expecting not even a response, or at least one in Thai. All I could stammer out was
Kab koon ka” (thank you) smile and move on. Maybe there was something lost in translation, but the emotion behind her words felt very genuine. In the US no one would say such a thing to a stranger, granted the real translation might me
“I like you” even that would not be said without “reason.” I
Tags: random thoughts, Thailand, Travel
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