Kimmie: "What is that nurse's name?"
Sister Haikera: "Which nurse?"
Kimmie: "The fat one from Surgical Ward."
This absolutely doesn't sound like something that an American would
say... But you would be surprised what has come out of my mouth in my
time here in Africa! To say that there is no politically correct
speech is the understatement of the year! If anything is offensive to
us as Americans, they the locals here say it... and, after three
years... so do I! Weight is not a taboo topic here. Sometimes they
mean being fat as being healthy and rich enough to buy good food to
eat, and sometimes they mean that it's bad because one is just fat...
I have been called both on many occasions! I have gotten used to it
and now I just joke about it... I think it will be hard for me to
come back into a society where weight is a constant issue. The other
day a girl saw a picture of my dad and told me "No wonder you are
fat." Honestly, she said it just like that! At home I would have
wanted to punch who ever said that, but to her all I said was "yes...
looking at my father I don't have a choice do I?" She thought it was
hilarious and giggled at it. When I told my dad he wasn't quite so
tickled by it. Sorry Daddy! :-)
Another example: When needing to go to the bathroom, in America a
woman might say "I need to powder my nose" or "I am just going to the
ladies' room, I'll be right back." Here, you just say "I have to pee,
I'm going to the toilet." or, "Oh, I am having running stomach, I
must go to the toilet.' Yup, no pretense at all of nicety involved!
You just say what you mean!
Want another? I pick my nose in public! Yup, I sure do.... and it's
perfectly acceptable here! Everyone does it! I used to joke about it
when I first came, and now I do it too. :-( Yikes!
Another: If you are trying to describe someone and they are darker
than most people then it is perfectly acceptable to say 'The very
black one'. The color of the skin is just another way of identifying
someone... there is no negative connotation to the darkness or
lightness of the color of brown that their skin is. If they are dark
skinned then they are called black and if someone is very light then
they are called colored. (FYI: Our new president is placed in that
category) I have a feeling that I am going to make the mistake of
talking about 'black people' or 'colored people' in a public place and
get beaten up!
So how can you help me? Don't freak out too much when I say something
that I am not supposed to... maybe we can come up with a code word
that you can say when I am inappropriate! :-) And if you see my
picking my nose... don't laugh too much... just hand me a tissue and
tell me I'm not in Rundu anymore! :-)
I would love to write more but I have to go to the toilet to go pee
now... ha ha ha ha
love you all!
k
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