Last week several children came to my door. Immediate anxiety, whenever The Children appear. The first problem involves understanding what it is they actually want. Hebrew is not my mother-tongue and it's not just that they speak indistinctly but that they speak so darned fast. The younger they are, the faster they speak. So it took several passes before I understood they were not asking for money.
What a relief! Now, I am not stingy and I am not without sympathy for a good cause. Or even a mediocre cause. It's only that I have so little actual cash on hand. I have just about enough to get myself home if I am abducted by aliens and they leave me stranded on the highway. Assuming they let me take my purse.
But it wasn't about money. The children wanted me to sign a pledge not to pick wildflowers. Easily done. I'm not much of a flower picker, not even out of other people's gardens. I happily signed their paper with the crayon provided and sent them on their way with my praises for their environmental responsibility. Or, given my proven ability to mangle the Hebrew language, for their spinning clarity. But I suppose they got it.
No comments:
Post a Comment