Creations

Cloître Saint-Trophime, Arles en Provence

Notre Dame de Paris

Cathédrale de Strasbourg

l'église Saint Trophime

Cathédrale de Strasbourg

Portail de l'église Saint Trophime

How to not say anything

Every language has its way of saying "nothing", and I do not mean the literal word "nothing", I'm actually talking about those words that we use for fear of possible silence. So deeply ingrained in our cultures, we do not even realize we use them ourselves, it's as innate as breathing. '

After moving to a new country, learning a new language and observing a new culture, it is funny how we pick up on a person's use of these "filler words". As we intently observe them to make sure we understand everything they are saying, everything they are expressing, we notice the way people literally string words or sounds together to say nothing at all. One of the first things I noticed since moving to France is how the French say "et donc voila" (literally, "and therefore here is"). What does that even mean? It is the same as an American saying "and that's that".

Notre Dame, Paris

When pointing it out to a French friend how funny it is that they'll say "et ben" (equivalent of "umm" in English) as they transition sentences, they laugh at the fact that it was always so natural they never realized they were doing it. It is the same way a young American will use the word "like" or the phrase "and then like" between almost every sentence; they do not even notice they are doing it. We use these words so much that a foreigner who may not even know the language will ask "what does this mean?". I laugh when my American friends ask me what "tipo" (like) means in portuguese. I find it funny because it is the most useless word of all my sentences, but it is the one they pick up on. It makes me realize how much I use it, and how much I have to stop using it. Et ben, voilà quoi. C'est ça.

I end by saying nothing.