Mind Reading-My New Skill!

On Friday we had to spend a significant amount of energy in the field preparing some fruit bushes.  When we finished the “Big Hungarian Boss” told us we did a good job and could take the rest of the day off. After prayers and lunch we decided to go back for just an hour and cultivate some mint that one of the woman was working on – she had two large bushels.

We were sitting working and the “boss” came in, folded his large, muscular arms across his even larger stomach and said something gruff, the boys all looked down, sort of shy like and Peter shrugged his shoulders and said something back.

When the “boss” left I said to the boys, “ I know what he said!” He said ” Why are you still working?”  “I told you that you could take the afternoon off. “  and you told him  “we wanted to help the lady with some of the mint for a short time.”  and he said “OK, you are good volunteers.”

The boys all looked and me with wide eyes and opened mouths and said” Tamara that is great, you understood all of that in Hungarian.”

I said “ Nem,(no)  not a word, but I am beginning to be able to read people’s minds. It happens when no one around you speaks your language, you look for clues.”  Then the rest of the week they would tease me and say “ Hey Tamara, what am I thinking?” I would reply “Peter, you are 18, you are thinking either about girls or Game of Thrones!”  I was always right.

On a more tender note when I returned to Budapest I went out for a coffee in one of those wonderful outdoor cafes – with all the flower boxes and umbrellas.  I noticed an elderly woman probably in her mid-80’s, all stooped over with a walker with wheels moving very slowly around the pavilion.

She glanced up and I met her eyes and said “Szia, jo napot!” ( Hello, good day) She stopped and lowered her eyes and when she glanced back up they were wet and she said “Koszonom, koszonom!” (Thank You).

Then she pointed to my eyes and to hers and said in Hungarian“ Thank you, Thank you for acknowledging me, every day I walk around the pavilion for a little exercise and no one looks at me, mostly they look away, no one talks or smiles and today you saw me. Thank you for seeing me.”

And I said “I know, I understand. No one greets strangers anymore and it gets worse as we age. I read once that as men age they become distinguished and noticed but as women age we become invisible. People today are so busy on their phones, texting to people far away and missing the opportunity to connect and engage with a live human being right before their eyes.”

Then she blew me a little kiss and was on her way. No we did not understand each other’s language, only each other’s hearts.  Talk to more strangers, you will find incredible, unexpected connections