So embarassed...

As a mother, I need to communicate certain things in Honduras that I never learned in language school. For example, some times it’s necessary to say: “Excuse, I need to nurse the baby now.” How do you say “nurse”? Why can’t you just say “the baby needs to eat?”

One day I brought Elijah to AFE. When it was time to nurse I began looking for a private location since there was an American team there (I have adopted Honduran customs in regards to nursing but I figured having Americans around require more discretion). Some of the Honduran construction workers saw me looking around and, being gentleman, asked what I was looking for and if there was anything they could do to help. I told them I was looking for a private place to feed the baby and they promptly led me to one of the classrooms. But then they followed me into the classroom and stood smiling in front of me, asking if there was anything else they could help me with. “No, I just needed a PRIVATE place to feed him, thank you.” Awkward moments passed as I waited expectedly for them to leave and they waited expectantly to help me in anything else.

Elijah missed his lunch that day and the following day I promptly asked our nanny how to say “nurse the baby” in Spanish. She told me to say: “Déle el chichí.”

So I’ve been saying “déle el chicí” everywhere: in the pastors’ meetings…to our Honduran friends Jeony and Jessy….to friendly strangers I meet in the street. Today I said it to my Spanish teacher, a very refined member of the Honduran upper class. With horror on her face she exclaimed: “Don’t say that, it’s vulgar!”

I looked up “chichi” immediately upon returning home. I can’t even bring myself to write what it means (I’ll leave it up to your imagination). However, for our purposes I’m translating the phrase: “Give ‘em tit.” I am so embarrassed about what I have been saying to my Honduran friends! I thought that after 28 years of creating very embarassing situations, there was nothing more that I could do. I was wrong.