The Illustrated Book of Sayings by Ella Frances Sanders (August 2018)
As I mentioned in my post earlier this week, below are some of my favorite expressions from Ella Frances Sanders’s newest book. Are there any expressions I liked so much that I might incorporate them into my vocabulary? I figured I should try at least one, so below are the expressions I considered along with reasons for why I've chosen to (or not) incorporate it into my vocabulary.
NO - Not a good fit with my conversation style…
'Oh! Pregnant horse!' – Filipino – used to express surprise.
'In a river full of piranhas, caiman swim on their backs' – Brazilian Portuguese – take extra precautions in an unsafe environment.
These likable expressions are not very similar to each other but I’ve lumped them together because I don’t think my conversation style fits the way these expressions are used. Specifically, when I notice something surprising I don’t shout out in surprise and when I’m moved to dispense wisdom I rarely resort to reciting proverbs that are 85% applicable to the situation at hand.
These expressions also have some minor technical problems that would make it hard for me to regularly incorporate them in my speech. First, I suspect that if I saw a pregnant horse around town, she would clip-clop by without my realizing she was expecting. How would I know? Do pregnant horses have huge bellies? Or perhaps they wear stretchy saddles? I guess if I ever visit the Philippines, I’ll try to find out.
As for the Brazilian expression, I think it would eventually bother me that the caiman swimming technique referenced in the saying has never actually been observed in wildlife. A proverb-like substance should have some truth in it, right? I’m also unsure if swimming scales-down would protect this crocodile species from the piranhas – what if the piranhas were really determined, or if the caiman’s underbelly sagged a little as it swam?
NO - The future will make these expressions incomprehensible...
'The one who fetches the water is the one who is likely to break the pot' – Ga (Ghana) – suggests that those who try are the most likely to make mistakes.
'Drop by drop, a whole lake becomes' – Bulgarian – great things happen slowly.
Like the Brazilian thought above, these expressions contain a proverb-like element that makes it unlikely I’ll use them. As a general rule, I tend not to speak in proverbs.
I also worry that the concepts these expressions reference might be under the threat of extinction in the remainder of my lifetime. It’s possible that climate change might cause certain water sources to dry up, for instance, and I wonder how this would change how the Bulgarians use their expression. I suppose they could make a similar point by saying ‘drop by drop, a whole lake evaporates’. This would admittedly be a more negative emphasis in comparison to the original but the main idea that some things take a very long time would remain in place.
The Ghanaian saying might come under threat from improved infrastructure. Surely, anyone with easy access to clean water would stop fetching water in giant, brittle pots. I guess this practice could end even more quickly if they starting using more durable pots. In both of these possibilities, the knowing wisdom of the expression would be lost – maybe they could alter the expression to “there’s no use crying over spilled water”.
NO - The concept is good, but I'll need to think of my own words…
'To feed a donkey sponge cake' – Portuguese – the senselessness of giving something wonderful to someone who cannot appreciate it.
'Not my circus, not my monkeys' – Polish – used to give up in a discussion.
I liked both of these animal-centric expressions on first glance and could see myself using these on an infrequent basis in 2019. But these expressions also share a certain mad-lib quality that I think will ultimately prevent them from becoming permanent fixtures in my vocabulary.
What do I mean by ‘mad-lib quality’? Well, to me it seems like the noun choices built into the expressions are a little arbitrary and could work just as well with different options. Why not feed a moose a soufflé, for example? And if it isn’t my deli, surely it isn’t my pastrami, either. My guess is that I’m likely to use these expressions as frameworks for my own pointless comparisons before I start confusing those around me with references to sponge cakes and circuses.
NO - What happens in Spain, stays in Japan…
'You are my orange half' – Spanish – an informal way to describe someone as a soul mate. It possibly originates from how no two oranges are alike and therefore each half can only have one other perfect match.
'To wear a cat on your head' – Japanese – to feign innocence or trick others with sweetness when you are actually up to no good.
These are pretty delightful little phrases but I fear that they would make very little sense outside their respective cultures. I’m all for trying new things, no doubt about it, but unless my next job is as The Vice-President, referring to someone as ‘my orange half’ feels more likely to come off as an insult than as a term of endearment (and even then... never mind).
As for wearing a cat, I worry that this expression suggests some kind of obsession with animal furs. Why possibly provoke an animal lover just for the reward of using some weird expression? I think our language has more than enough ways to say ‘pulling a fast one’ without invoking unneeded associations to Cruella de Ville.
The big winner…
'To give a green answer to a blue question' – Tibetan – to give an answer completely unrelated to the question asked.
This one felt like a winner as soon as I saw it. Longtime readers will surely agree – if TOA does anything, it consistently provides green answers to blue questions. I’m looking forward to more of the same in 2019.
