June 7,2010 Norm.Every morning at the crack of dawn, we have this pigeon (actually a dove) that somehow thinks it is related to a roaster and has the mandate to let us know that morning has come....NAGYON SZÉP!!....NAGYON SZÉP.....Now I have no objection to being told that its a beautiful day (thats the NAGYON SZÉP translation,) but what really gets my shorts in a knot is how this *@%#* pigeon creature with a brain no bigger than my ginko-biloba pill, speaks such good Hungarian. Mind you its speach is limited, but so is mine and I'm supposed to be of the supperior species.
We have been told that the Hungarian language has tribal origins and competes with Manderine as the toughest language to learn, but the pigeons can do it and you should hear the little children. Yet I am convinced that even the older adults are still learning as not two people can agree on what is really correct. They say 3-5% of Hungarians speak English. I would down grade that by saying that only 3-5% speak a little English. Fluent English speakers probably number less than 1%. Hungarian is spoken only in Hungary. My own experience in learning the language I refer to as "The Parable of the Sive"......learn two words and next day forget two words. Sorry Tim!
This last Sunday was my first opportunity to conduct the Sacrament Meeting. With the help of a cheat sheet, I was able to do so and bear testimony in Magyarul. I felt blessed when no one got up and left yet some snickered and rolled their eyes. Thats the beauty of them all being such good friends, and they all said such kind things . ........at least I think they said kind things!!
And as the pigeon says.............Have a NAGYON SZÉP day!!
This post really made me laugh! Reminds me of the son of my former stake president. He was trying to learn Mandarin and was ready to pack up his bags and go home out of sheer frustration. As he was sitting in a park trying to sort out his thoughts, he saw a boy playing frisbee with his dog, calling to it to pick it up, and the dog obeyed. Well, that elder said to himself, "If a dog can learn Mandarin, then I can too, and I"m not going to let a dog show me up." He went on to complete his mission.
ReplyDeleteOther than a few basic words - hello, goodby. We are not even trying to learn Navajo. We miss a lot of what happens in all of our meetings. Speakers go back and forth from English to Navajo, or speak Navajo, or speak English. We smile. We recognize our names, but have no idea what is being said about us. We hope no false doctrine is being taught! But we will never know!
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