So, parents are good for all sorts of things. Making sure you have something to eat, getting you to elementary school and ballet class, yes, but also advice. Talking to them Sunday helped me start looking things a little differently. Like, from my dad, when I don’t have anything to do at the internship, it’s okay. And, from my mom, hanging out with kids isn’t too bad, either.
I have spent a lot of time volunteering with kids, tutoring reading and leading songs with Girl Scout troops. I spent last summer working at a day care. So with this internship this summer, I was ready for something different—not especially looking to do things with the kids who come to the MJC for after school care and day camps and homework help. My mom keeps telling me how I have told her talking to kids is a perfect way to learn a language (so it would be okay if I ended up with them). And today and yesterday, when I went along to walk them from the school to the MJC, it was the best part of my day.
It has been sunny the last few days, which is so different from the cold and overcast and rain. This afternoon, when it started to cool down and there was a breeze blowing, we walked back from the elementary school. On the way, Amandine told me not to worry, I would learn French soon. She asked me to teach her English. I told her I could tell her a few words—what did she want to know? She wanted to know how to say “Amandine” in English.
“Amandine,” I said, with my American accent.
By the time we got there, we had “translated” the names of everyone in the group, along with a steady stream of nouns—“lunettes?”
“La porte?”
“Les doigts?”
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