An elderly neighbor stopped my husband on the street one day. “I need to talk to you,” she said softly, through her toothless grin. “I want to apologize,” she added hanging her head. “For not showing you proper respect. But I didn’t know you were a professor! I’m so sorry!” “Don’t worry about it, Zia (auntie)” he comfortedContinue reading “Through Her Toothless Grin {And Speaking Italian}”
Tag Archives: communication
Village Gossip and Culture Shock
In small Italian towns, anything can happen. And sometimes it doesn’t even matter if it’s true, as long as it’s good gossip! Like the time they had my husband all but dead and buried! Or at best seriously ill. We were away most of the summer, as we often are, staying at our summer homeContinue reading “Village Gossip and Culture Shock”
The Italian Tormenta: Winter’s on the Way
The Italian word tormenta has three definitions. It can mean a blizzard. Or a turbine of powdery light snow, carried by strong winds over mountain peaks, ridges, and slopes. Finally, it is a present tense conjugation of the verb to torment. This should give you a pretty good idea of how many Italians think aboutContinue reading “The Italian Tormenta: Winter’s on the Way”
4 Principles for Taming the Tongue
Communication has existed since the beginning, and it began with God. He created everything, through his speech. He simply spoke and it all came into being. God has always used communication to create and build, and he wants us to do likewise. God’s word constructs With it he created the earth, making a safe placeContinue reading “4 Principles for Taming the Tongue”
Even Animals Speak Italian!
Ask any child what the chicken says and he or she is sure to say “Cluck, cluck.” Unless of course, that child happens to speak another language. You see, animals speak different languages, depending on where they live! There is no universal way to imitate animal sounds. So when we do imitate their sounds we doContinue reading “Even Animals Speak Italian!”
Amusing Moments with Neighbors
Our neighbors are mostly older, simple folk with little education. Often confused by our rapidly changing world, they often have difficulty using technology. So they tend to stick to the way they’ve always done things. And that can lead to some pretty crazy conversations! Crazy dialogues! Just for fun, let me share some of theseContinue reading “Amusing Moments with Neighbors”