Whimsy Cult HQ

 

One of the kids running the hostel owes me 10bhat, it’s around $.33 and not an amount I’m concerned with, but I’m practicing my numbers, so I inquired about my “sib bhat?” He looked embarrassed to have forgotten, so I tried to apologize using google translate and during that fumbling learned he doesn’t speak Thai either. He’s Burmese.

I said “Ming-gala-ba” and “chezute-amati”, the only two phrases I know in Burmese. They mean “Hello” and “Thank You”. He was confused and a little pumped and said “Ming-ga-la-bah” back (except he said it, you know… correctly). But, I realized in that moment that the first two phrases I learn in any language are “Hello” and “Thank You”.

In Thai it’s “Sah-wah-de-krop” and “Krop kun krop”. Swahili, “Jambo” and “Asanti sana”. Irish, it’s “cunt” and “wanker”. Being a Harter, “where is the bathroom?” is a close third. But, this realization afforded me a rare moment of positive self-reflection. Recognizing this quirk of language acquisition and what it says about my values felt good. It’s not often I allow myself the indulgence of self-satisfaction, but this cropped up so organically and unexpectedly I couldn’t help it. Kid still has my 10bhat though, so I’m going to have to learn “Where’s my muh-fuckin money?” in Burmese and then figure out how to land that joke.