The letters were fabulously done, including ages, favorite activities, colors, school subjects, and even a little humorous in their simplicity including sentences like "I like dogs. Do you have a dog?" "I like doing stuff. Do you like doing stuff?" and even "I like my dad."
I really can't wait to share them with my Thai students because I think it is going to be a beautiful way to engage them in and encourage their conversational English - which they desperately need to improve as ASEAN 2015 approaches- and a way to exchange cultures at the most basic and innocent level: childhood.
But after I calmed down and had read each letter at least twice, and marveled at their candor, I realized something. I realized I'm communicating with my Thais in the same, basic 8-year-old vocabulary and simple sentence structure. That my questions have not gone much further than the questions presented in these letters: What is your favorite food? Do you have any siblings? What games do you like to play?
It made me wonder if this is why I'm still feeling isolated, alone, and very much an outsider.
So, since 'The Arrival of the Letters' (ie: the past two days) I've been trying to talk more at the office. I have decided that if I talk about everything that happens, or really, whatever is on my mind, it will help me feel more comfortable with the language, will improve my sentence structure, and will basically help me peel away another layer to these people and this culture. Which I so desperately need and want to do.
The following are some conversations I had today.
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Me: Tan Balat, were you ever a monk? (Tan Balat is the title for Chief of Staff at the office)
Tan Balat: Yes, 20 years ago.
Me: For how long? One month?
Tan Balat: No, no, no, no, no. For 5 months.
Me: Did you like it? What was it like?
Tan Balat: <Proceeds to sing, very loudly, a monk chant>
Me: <In English> I'll take that as a yes.
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Me: <Points to a picture of the snow dumped on Maryland after Hurricane Sandy> America! This happened because of the hurricane. Does Thailand have hurricanes?
Tan Balat: <also points to picture> House of Salah!
Me: No. That's in another state, but I think my house received a little snow from the hurricane.
Tan Balat: Is it cold?
Me: Yes. And you can eat it.
Yao (a coworker): You can eat snow?
Me: Yes, but don't eat the yellow snow.
Yao: Yellow snow?
Me: Yes, if the snow is yellow that means someone went to the bathroom there. It's an American joke.
Fun (another coworker): You say ugly things! <laughs>
Tan Balat: But you can eat spiders. They are very delicious.
Yao: Remember when we were in the car yesterday and there was a grasshopper? Tan Balat eats those, too.
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Me: Hi Focus! How are you? What are you doing?
Focus (Fun's 8 yr old daughter): Do you have mermaids in America?
Me: Yes. We have a few.
Focus: How much do they cost?
Me: Um, I don't know.
Focus: Are they expensive?
Me: Um, wanna watch a movie?
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Me: Whose dog is at the office every day? Is it the Mayor's dog?
Yao: Yes, it is the Mayor's horse.
Me: Oh, I thought it was the Balat's dog.
Yao: No, the horses are the Mayor's.
<We pull up to the office and the dog is sitting out front>
Yao: But the dog is the Balat's dog.
Me: Oh, maa means horse and maa means dog.
Yoa: MAAAAA!! Horse. Maaaah. Dog.
Me. MAAAAA!! Maaaah.
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