Well, here we are one week from Valentine's Day, the Hallmark Moment those of us born in mid-November consider National Procreation Day, and I'm thinking of pet names folks use towards each other, based on a linguistic faux pas I made yesterday.The 'classic' terms of endearment are ones like 'honey', 'sweetie', 'peaches' and other diabetes-creating terms indigenous to our species. My Visigoth ancestors were no doubt fond of the lumps of flour we call dumplings that make up the latter part of 'chicken and...' so my mistake seems all the more appropriate, given my ancestry.
So...in Mandarin, (using phonetic English) "Nee How, Shao Mei" means "Hello, Little Sister". However, "Nee How, Shao Mai" (different spelling, same sound to the American ear) means "Hello, Little Dumpling"...not absolutely a term of endearment if the lady is weight-sensitive, but ok when it's your much younger sister in the Lord and you make her laugh at the 'ooops' involved.
Why do I mention this at all? I'm weird, for one, but it also gave me a point of contact with all the missionaries I pray for who have stories of linguistic laughs at their own expense as they learn a language not their own.
Besides, it's an object lesson in one of my Bob-isms: If you don't laugh at yourself, everybody else will!
Got chuckles?
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