Common ground in an uncommon land

We had Alli and her family over for gouter (snacks) this afternoon, and while the excited kids themselves were not quite bouncing off the walls, their happy voices certainly were. I think having friends over is always fun for both kids and adults... but there seemed to be extra joy today, and I think the use of English was one of the reasons why.

Jack, Katie, and Olivia were eagerly waiting all week for the arrival of Lauren (who is a year older than Jack), Claudia (who is a a year younger than Jack), and Penelope (who is coming up on two). The five older children are all attending various French schools, and even little Penny goes to French nursery school a few times a week. So they are all fully being immersed in all things French.

As we shared stories of their school experiences, it is clear all of them are doing incredibly well integrating, adapting, learning French, making friends, and finding their way in this new world. It's a testament to the amazing nature of young brains that the children can pick up language so easily, and that even though they are put in a challenging situation each day they enter school (or a shop, or a friend's house), they are thriving.

And yet the way they played today -- the intensity, the joy, the LOUDNESS, the delight -- reminded me that what they are doing every day in quite difficult. And there was almost a relief as the five bigger kids chased Penny around the house, as they hiked up to the top of Coconut Mountain (what Kate and Liv have renamed Mont-St-Victor), as they played with little ponies and Pokemon cards and talked and laughed and talked.

It was simply play... no work involved.

John and I felt a bit of the same while visiting with Alli (who is originally from the U.S.) and her husband John (who is originally from Scotland). It was such a pleasure to talk without thinking about the words -- without worrying about verb tense or whether the noun was masculine or feminine or if the situation called for the informal use of "tu" or the formal use of "vous". It was just comfortable, interesting, quick, thoughtful, good conversation. It was sometimes even witty, sometimes nuanced, and usually even grammatically correct (and you can't say the same thing about my French!).

Oh -- and they brought an amazing bottle of white Burgundy from the Hospices de Beaune and as well as what is possibly my new favorite cheese (a smooth, rich, subtle soft cheese whose name I need to write down, if only to be able to eat it again). I had thought of preparing a gateaux au chocolat but didn't have all of the ingredients, and so ended up making a very American strawberrry shortcake (which came out a little dry, sadly, but at least the idea was inspired).

Again, the only problem with all of this is that we have to leave these great new friends too soon! I will try to not dwell on that too much -- and instead just enjoy each day here, and each encounter (in any language).