Pal Transliterations

A couple of the usual suspects – kids who like to come and hang out under our house with their folks.

Because we can, that’s why.

Yesterday I was sitting in my office trying to nail down some vocabulary relating to the concept of evil. When I took my best guess to get the ball rolling,  umatuh vivi imat (lit: man bad altogether), our conversation took a very different turn than I was expecting. Instead of conjuring up pictures of dark and sinful, my words provoked the following immediate response: “Oh yeah, I totally know what you are getting at, that kind of guy that does things too quickly and all slipshod. Yeah, we know all about those guys. Whatever they do doesn’t get done right and it doesn’t last.” Rather than translating a concept, I had transliterated (*blush* ‘Excuse me.’) – attempting to convey a concept merely by changing English words into Pal words.

For the fun of it and in honor of a good friend (you know who you are Karl), I thought that I’d put together a few more transliterations – phrases in Pal that have other connotations – but are pretty funny to Elizabeth when I shout them out to her:

Gna nunguva gibong dzekam	I’ve fallen for you.	Pal thinking: Dude, you are clumsy – why did you trip over your wife?
Nuh nya uta pabap	You are one hot mama.	Pal thinking: Huh? If she is hot, she should go sit in the shade.
Oy mesimi, maya itana kuai	Hey little woman what’s up?	Pal thinking: Where is the little girl? …and… Is he talking about the clouds or something on top of the house?
Gol kiop, maya iatul kotoyei	Whats cookin, good lookin?	Pal thinking: Why does he care how his food looks – as long as it has plenty of salt, its got to be good.

Just a few of the things that we have been up to this last week…

Once Upon A Time

One of the fun things that we have been able to do lately is to hear and tell stories about things that happened a long time ago. One interesting thing that we are very bad at right now (its always something isn’t it?) is determining by the style of speech whether the story that is being told is a true story or a cultural myth. Mastery of this aspect of language is critical for Biblical teaching; we surely wouldn’t want to express a parable as a factual account or a factual story as a parable or myth. Even in the translation there will be grammatical markers that will help our friends understand the purpose of the text. If I had started this paragraph with ‘once upon a time’ you might have cause to think that I was relating an anecdote rather than real experiences.  There are Pal ways to do the same thing, and learning about them is rather fun (and mistake prone). In fact, yesterday I was relating the story of how cheese is made to some guys and today I’ll probably have to go and let them know that it is not a mythical substance.

As seen through the eye of the camera – the salute is the most common pose that our friends take when photographed.

 

Depend and Deepened

As you remember us in your prayers this week please bring before the Lord:

·         Thankfulness for continued recovery and growing strength.

·         Thankfulness that the unexpected costs associated with sudden illness have been provided for.

·         Thankfulness for progress in language and relationship

·         Thankfulness for growing friendship and encouragement with our new partners

·         Continued wisdom as we are beginning to delve into harder, darker, and deeper subjects with our friends

·         Stability for our family and partners.

·         Provision for our new partners as they save for housebuilding

Thanks for all you do for us,

Nate for the family

Posted via email from PNG Time