conversation

So we went to a friends place. They were German, and I should say very nice people. As we sat around the table chatting, something caught my attention. Every once in a while the parents (usually their mum and my dad) would turn to someone looking for an English equivalent of a word. As we were finished talking about a subject we would each talk a few sentences in our own language, face each other again, smile and pick a new subject to continue talking.

We all had a great time, and although not all of us were very comfortable with the common language, the messages got through. We understood the need to let the other family take a few minutes to let the subject sink. By the end of the night, although we were still sitting around the table, we were talking in pairs. Very less frequently were any of the parents needing help with words. Either they needed to brush off the rust, to start talking comfortably or they had realized there are ways around finding a specific phrase ....