Evangel Family Church

OCT

poTAYto poTAHto toMEHto toMAHto

posted on Friday, 2009

With longer immersion in an angmoh country, we have become more accustomed to the hotchpotch sounds of the Aussie, British, African, Scandinavian and other accents around us… We probably add to the English variety as well, with our distinctive Singapore tongue. However, over time, some of the other pronunciations do get into our system.

Take our first stay in Perth. We hunted for the elusive no-girk. Donch have…
Eventually, we realise that it was pronounced as nuu-gak.

The phonics experts are probably shocked to the core at the above lame layman attempt!
Phonics expert, Stage 1

At a bookshop, I went, “Do you think the other Die-mocks branches will have this in stock?”
The cashier looked at me in bewilderment as Allan nudged me.
For the record, the bookstore Dymocks is pronounced as D-merks

Phonics expert, Stage 2

There were other Australian pronunciations which we still could not and probably

will never get our tongue round to:

Hostel: Not hos-ter but hos-tel (like the tel in “hotel”)
Fillet: Not fi-lay but fi-let (like the let in “outlet”)
Intestine/Philistine: Not tinat the end but tine (like the “tine” in “Palestine”)
Stomach: Not sta-mart but sta-mick (but we were gratified to hear Mr Kevin Rudd

pronounce it the same way as us)
Debut: I kid you not, but some newscasters pronounced this as the-bull, rather than day-bule.

Phonics expert, Stage 3

Then there is of course the difference between American English and standard English (if there is one!) The most difficult has been “data” (day-ta for us and dar-ta for most Aussies). I was so pleased one day to hear a British-born academic pronounced it the American way. When I asked her why day-ta and not dar-ta, she explained that it was a relatively modern word coined by the Americans.

Phonics expert, Stage 4

I mentioned before that Singlish cannot be faked by non-native speakers.

Actually, I won’t even dare to consider myself an expert in Singlish or in dialects. It was quite recently that I realised that “diam” (for shut up) is not a Hokkien word, but a Malay word. And likewise for words like “pasar” and “roti”; both words I had used extensively as a child and pronounced it the supposed Hokkien way – “pa-sat” and “low-di”.

Well, neither can we fake an angmoh accent.

I do speak a bit differently around my colleagues. But if I try too hard, they just can’t get what I am rambling about. Strangers, especially when acquainted with the Singaporean-speak, had been able to zoom in on my origins. In time, I realise that the best accent is still a neutral one, like how MM, SM, PM and Tommy Koh speak.

But I guess beyond pronunciations, intonations, accents, colloquialisms, etc, the most important thing is this… the substance of our speech:

Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt,

so that you may know how to answer everyone.
Colossians 4:6

A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.

The tongue of the wise commends knowledge, but the mouth of the fool gushes folly.
Proverbs 15:1 to 2

There is a cute song, an oldie, whose lyrics highlighted up some differences in pronunciations. Enjoy!

Let’s Call The Whole Thing Off

Verse
Things have come to a pretty pass
Our romance is growing flat,
For you like this and the other
While I go for this and that,
Goodness knows what the end will be
Oh I don't know where I'm at
It looks as if we two will never be one
Something must be done:

Chorus - 1
You say either and I say either, You say neither and I say neither
Either, either Neither, neither, Let's call the whole thing off.

You like potato and I like potahto, You like tomato and I like tomahto
Potato, potahto, Tomato, tomahto, Let's call the whole thing off

But oh, if we call the whole thing off then we must part
And oh, if we ever part, then that might break my heart

So if you like pyjamas and I like pyjahmas, I'll wear pyjamas and give up pyajahmas
For we know we need each other so we, Better call the whole off off
Let's call the whole thing off.

Chorus - 2
You say laughter and I say larfter, You say after and I say arfter
Laughter, larfter after arfter, Let's call the whole thing off,

You like vanilla and I like vanella, You saspiralla, and I saspirella
Vanilla vanella chocolate strawberry, Let's call the whole thing off

But oh if we call the whole thing off then we must part
And oh, if we ever part, then that might break my heart

So if you go for oysters and I go for ersters, I'll order oysters and cancel the ersters
For we know we need each other so we, Better call the calling off off,
Let's call the whole thing off.

OCT

How do they know it’s spring?

posted on Sunday, 2009

Everyone finally breathed a sigh of relief, as we bade farewell to the last traces of winter.

I know we dread the heat in Singapore… but after days and nights of shivering and the on-going winter flu, it’s…

Goodbye cold, hello warmth again!

*whisper* Trying to ignore the fact that scorching summer and creepy-crawlies come after...

Officially 1 September marks the start of spring. But nature takes its own course and this year, the rain will finally clear up in early October. This September registered a record rainfall as well as freezing temperatures for Western Australia: http://www.watoday.com.au/wa-news/perth-shivers-through-coldest-september-days-on-record-20090930-gc0x.html

Yet, right on cue, the landscape had started the rejuvenation process of spring.

Some of the trees are already back to their lush looks before their leaves were shed. Buds are coming out for others, and it was just beautiful to see life anew.

How do they know it’s spring?

But more importantly, do we know it’s spring for us too? We may have gone through droughts of despair, frosts of fear, tempests of trials… stunted, fallen over, trampled upon, pruned… but as long as we cling tightly to our lifeline, we know that He will bring back the spring time.

If the soul-less trees could recognise the season for renewal and growth, all the more should we who are connected to the Vine.

Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself;

it must remain in the vine.

Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.
"I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit;

apart from me you can do nothing.

If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers;

such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned.

John 15:4 to 6

'Let us fear the LORD our God,

who gives autumn and spring rains in season,

who assures us of the regular weeks of harvest.'

Jeremiah 5:23a

Name:

If babies can choose, Cynthia wouldn’t have been my name!

Age:

Between 0 and 100 (I could narrow this range... but nyah!)

Height:

Taller than Zaccheus?

Weight:

Haha... maybe 1 talent?! But as Garfield would say, I am not overweight but under-tall...

Home church:

Evangel Family Church (Singapore, from June 1982)
Metro Church (Perth, from August 2007)

Interests:

Food (eat it... not cook it); surfing (on keyboard, not surf board); gadgets (ogling but not upgrading); all things kawaii; etcetera etcetera etcetera (read all about it on my “addiction” series)

2009 resolutions:

Prayer – more burdened and intercessory prayers
Word of God – not mere logos but rhema
Church ministry – step up
Health - lose my 1 talent (eh, how many kilos is that huh?)