Cultural Gaps

One of the most fascinating things about living in America is our vast melting pot of culture and tradition.  When people come to this country, whether it be for a visit or as an immigrant, they bring with them their cultural richness. Language, religion, foods, clothing, traditions, etc., define us as what we are, who we are, and what we do.

 

Inevitably, as a foreigner settles down and becomes “American”, many of the differences tend to fade as the visitor acclimates to his or her surroundings. But yet, little cultural differences occur. And sometimes, they are just funny!

 

Yesterday, I was chatting with a friend of mine who is of Indian descent. She has been in this country for a long time, and is very clearly acclimated. Yet, there is no question about her background. Every now and again, she dresses in a beautiful sari. Every now and again, you can detect a little bit of an accent in her speech. And certainly, her cooking is a treat, rich with Indian curry. When we spoke, we discussed a recent event that took us both by surprise. While describing her reaction to me, she said to me, “it just blows me!”   

 

What-what-WHAT?!!!!

 

OK, I really am not a five-year old. Really, I’m not THAT immature. But it took every bit of self-restraint that I had to keep from busting a gut. BWAAAAAAAA HA HA !!!!! I offered her a very casual and subtle speech correction. “Yah,” I said to her. “It blows me away, too!” The conversation moved on, and I went on my way. Yet, for the rest of the day, I had a puckish smirk on my face thinking about what she accidentally said.

 

Personally, I am fascinated by cultural expressions – especially since so many of them do not make sense in a literal context. When you grow up with the expression, you really do not think about it anymore. It just means what it means. When one says, “bug off,” how much literal sense does that make?  When I grew up in New England, if a person meant to tell someone off in a mild manner, he would say, “You can go pound salt.” We have Mr. Shakespeare to thank for such oddities as “dead as a doornail”, “catching a cold,” and so many other oddities that have stuck around. I can only imagine how strange such expressions must be to an adult from another culture trying to make sense of us silly English-speakers. Yet, when a foreigner makes a slight mistake to a colloquial expression, it turns on a spotlight to the absurdity of the language. And when the change in the expression inadvertently creates a completely different meaning, it can be funny. 

 

“It just blows me.” BWAAAAAAAAAAAAA HA HA HA!