Plain Speaking
My sister in law has a hand-crafted wooden sign hanging in her kitchen. It says,
I have giggled over that sentiment for years. And now I believe I have found its Dutch equal.
While reading books with 4-year old Andrew an afternoon or two ago, we zipped through our standard repertoire; and then he stepped back to the book shelf for more choices. When he returned, he thrust a book into my lap. It was one I hadn't seen before: Richard Scarry; Eertse Woordjes (First Words). So we snuggled up together on the couch to share it. I read to him the Dutch vocabulary on each page as we watched Little Bunny's day unfold from morning wake up (wakker worden) to night time tuck in (lekker slaap). With each flipped page in the book, Andrew repeated word after word, until we reached the page about breakfast.
He couldn't repeat because I hadn't said a word.
I was laughing too hard.
There on the page before me was printed my new maxim.
The illustration shows Mama Bunny serving Baby Bunny breakfast and above her head the words read:
Literal translation makes that something like: What Mama makes, is delicious.
Or as translated MY WAY: 'You are gonna eat what I give you. No complaints. No groans. No whining!'
Better and clearly the point, right?
It's my new catch-all catch-phrase for all kinds of things around here.
And as soon as I learn to tole paint, I am going to put it on a sign and hang it in my kitchen.
