So obviously I was nervous going in, but not because I haven't spent enough time with the family, but because I was afraid that I wouldn't be able to communicate with them enough to actually accomplish anything.
When I got there, they were very excited to see me, which is always a great ego boost. I slipped my shoes off as usual, because in Burma it is considered rude to not remove your shoes when entering someones home. This is a cultural custom that we do not see very often in the United States. Sometimes my mom yells at me if I track mud in the house, or have my shoes (or feet at all) on her coffee table, but removing my shoes at home is not considered rude to my family, and it is rarely the first thing that I think to do when I get to someone else's house.
We all started out the afternoon sitting in a circle together on the living room floor. Their cousins were there, which was an immediate relief to me because Michael's cousins have been in the United States for awhile, and the two little boys speak English fairly well, they just aren't huge fans of being our translators. I was glad that I at least had something to fall back on if I found myself completely lost.
I brought some children book with me that I got from the library, and as soon as I took them out the little girls were ready to read! I was excited that they wanted to read, and we actually read all four books that I brought right away. One of the little girls in the family is 8 years old, and her favorite way to read is to repeat what I say while I am reading the book. I can always tell by her kinesics when she is confused about something that we are reading. Kinesics is just a fancy term for body language and can include many things like gestures, head movements, eye behavior and facial expressions; basically all the non-verbal behaviors that I and many other hard of hearing and deaf people rely on for everyday communication. When Moo La La (the little girl) is confused about something while we are reading, or playing flash card games, she almost always exhibits the classic eye brow raise. This is a kinesic that I have always seen across races and cultures, and it always means that something is not fully understood.
Every week there is always something about American culture that I have a very hard time explaining. A few weeks ago the topic was mermaids and fairy-tales. This week the misunderstood concept was parades. What the heck is a parade? And why are parades a thing? How in the world was I going to explain this?
Anna had given me some children dictionaries, so I looked up the word parade in the picture dictionary, and it did more harm than good. Basically children's dictionaries expect you to already understand the concept of a parade, and actually uses the word "parade" in the definition that it gives.
So we shut the book, and I decided that charades was the best way to go, since I couldn't come up with the right words. We created a mamba line. It was hilarious, and we all had fun, and there was a lot of laughter. I still have no idea if they even really understand what a parade is, and as an American and someone who grew up here, I can't honestly say I even have any idea of the history behind a parade. But the point is that we tried our best with the resources that we had.
The last major thing that I noticed was the cultural idea of personal space.
I have always had major issues with people invading my personal space, and have always been kind of claustrophobic.
This is a very "touchy-feely" family. I don't know enough about Burma to know if this sense of personal space (or lack there of) is a cultural thing or a family thing, but it is still really weird for me.
The whole time we were working on flash cards, one of the little boys was laying with his head on my back.
Saturday was my last "official" day with the family and I am finished with my hours, but I look forward to continuing my volunteer experience.
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