Evelyn talks very little about her days at school. In fact, so little that I really could only tell you two things about her experiences thus far: 1. she has one friend named Eve, and 2. she has picked up a foreign language, so to speak.
Since school began, our conversations have been going a little like this:
Me: Evy, what would you like for lunch today?
Evy: dobeo dum latein merg au don
Me: Evy.. come on, what do you want to eat?
Evy: dobeo dum latein merg au don
Me: I can’t understand you!
Evy: (exasperatedly) MOM! I’m speaking French! I said I want a peanut butter and jelly sandwhich!
Me: Ok.
And believe me, the exchange is every bit as frustrating as it appears in writing!! Why is she doing this, I ask. But alas, she does not explain herself.
Well, today the puzzle was solved! While Evy and I walked to school- who should we run into, but Eve- Evelyn’s only friend. The two little girls didn’t say a word to one another- they just smiled. And so I introduced myself to Eve’s mother and asked her a little about herself. She explained that she and her daughter had just moved to New York last month from Paris, France. Aha!! Eve does not speak English, only French.
And now I find Evelyn’s attempt to communicate in French adorable rather than irritating.
