interpretation

some of you may know that i used to translate and interpret for french-speaking africans at our old church in st. louis.  (many) complications aside, i loved it.  it was just the right job for my skills, which were far from perfect but quite serviceable for the need.  i loved the communicative aspect - the nods and eyes lighting up, i loved the social and spiritual aspects - the inclusion of the excluded.

almost ten years later, my interpretation skills are being dusted off again.  on our 1,235th time through our chinese kids' song cd, i'm getting used to it -

wo jia men chien yiou shiao he
what does that mean, mommy?  in front of our house there's a little stream
hou mien yiou shan pou
what does that mean mommy?  behind there are hills

yi zhe ching wa yi zhang tsue
what does that mean, mommy?  one frog with one mouth
liang ge yien jing se tiao tue
what does that mean, mommy?  two eyes and four legs

the girls are starting to contribute too -
liang zhe lao hu
that means two tigers, mommy!
pao de kwai
that means run really fast, mommy!

they say that simultaneous interpretation (interpreting while the other speaker continues to speak, as opposed to taking turns) is one of the more taxing things a brain can do.  i did it a number of times for the french services, and i actually relished the challenge, the mental exercise of input, transform and output.  it was fun - but then, i'm an undeniable geek in some ways ;-)

i've been thinking though, this mommy job is not unlike simultaneous interpretation.  all of the input that comes our way - it's my job to make sense of it for the girls.  sometimes i can see the question in their eyes.  is this safe?  is this worthwhile? did i do a good job?   sometimes i hear it in their words.  look at the beautiful leaves, lucy! (something i constantly say in the fall)  i div jie jie all the senstain [berenstain] beah books!  i be denerous?  yes, my sweet lucy. 

sometimes they tell me when they don't understand.  how come the girls don't have mothers? [from I Love You Like Crazy Cakes, a story about adoption]  how come ah ah had to die? [from the chinese version of I'll Always Love You]  how come that man doesn't have a place to live?  [the men with the homeless signs that seem to line the rockville pike]

sometimes they don't know that they don't understand.  but i need to run circles!  not in the parking lot, girlies.  but i want see if daddy toming!  you can't walk out of the apartment by yourself without telling anyone, lucy.  but i can't see my books in the dark!  that's the point, chloe.. you're supposed to go to sleep when it's dark, not read by keychain-light (i can't believe she's discovered this already)

the thing about simultaneous interpretation is that, while rewarding, it can also be exhausting.  an interpreter friend quoted a source saying 11 minutes is considered the maximum an interpreter can do without a break before the brain turns to mush.  the interpreter also needs to constantly refresh his understanding of both cultures and languages, otherwise the interpretation risks becoming inaccurate or irrelevant. 

fast forward to application. 
1)  what do i, and other mommies, do to take a break?  not just a break, but a refreshment?
2)  how do we study our children, so as to know what speaks to them, what they need to hear and how they hear it, as they grow and change?
3)  how do we ourselves become mature, having our powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil?[1]   how do we rightly recognize what is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent? [2]

post a comment if you have ideas!

[1] hebrews 5:14
[2] philippians 4:8