Rite of Passage
It’s one of those rites of passage through which every missionary must pass; cultural faux pas of the linguistic type. Which, in a country where the language has 38 consonants and 24 vowel sounds, is not really uncommon (english has about half that many). Many of these sounds are extremely subtle, and if not enunciated correctly can transform one word into a totally different word, not unlike the subtle difference between the English word ‘desert’ and ‘dessert’. A good language teacher like mine will even go so far as to help identify embarrassing problem words – but there are a great many, and foreigners can be very creative in their mistakes. I was fully aware of both this rite of passage and the strategic way in which the Khmer language increases and enhances the likelihood of this rite. But the knowledge of this did little to help salvage my dignity when, in the excitement of catching my first scorpion and carrying it out to 14 new Cambodian staff whom I’d only met the day before, I confidently announced in Khmer “Look everyone, I have a VAGINA!”
