Six years ago I was in France teaching French youth about the holiday and thought it would be fun to do with them the cute little hand turkey exercise we do here as children. I had them trace their hands and make it into a turkey drawing and have them write 5 things they were thankful for, one in each finger/feather. I had drawn my own example turkey and written a few things I was thankful for, like friends and family, and then some silly ones like Matt Damon and dessert. I passed it around as I explained the holiday, and the idea of "being thankful." For whatever reason though, it wasn't translating very well and there were a lot of confused whispers because my students preferred to whisper confusedly in French than ever ask me any direct questions. Eventually I heard a girl ask "Why is there a person named Dessert in her turkey?" It was at this point I realized we were confusing being thankful TO with being thankful FOR.
Damn prepositions.
We cleared it up and drew some turkeys, but I will always remember how the young ones thought I knew a person named Dessert.
Later I went home to my Welsh roommate who I discovered believed that all Americans celebrate Thanksgiving exactly how they do on Friends. I hadn't even seen Friends. We both learned a lot.
I explained that "turkey balls" is not a traditional dish.
Thursday, November 28, 2013
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