The other day I was sitting in a van waiting for some clients to finish their business lunch when a truck pulled out in front of me and the driver began unload groceries. Not long after, a man wearing work gloves rapped on my window and motioned for me to roll it down. I rolled the automatic window down and, assuming he was helping unload the truck, asked him, "Do you want me to move back?" He said no, inclined his head and said "Salaam Aleikum."
Having taught Arabic students, I knew the correct response is "Aleikum Salaam." Instead, my mouth merely hung open until my bewildered look registered with the speaker. "You don't speak Arabic?"
I shook my head, "sorry."
"Oh sorry man, you look Arabic."
About a year ago I went to a Subway Restaurant here in Gatineau and proceeded to order my submarine sandwich in flawless French. I immediately swallowed my pride in my linguistic accomplishment when the server threw a French sentence at me that I couldn't comprehend, "I'm sorry, could you repeat that in English?"
"I said, aren't you from Pakistan? There's pork on this sub."
To be fair, I had a beard at the time, but I still feel that I don't look particularly Pakistani. Now that Islam has overtaken Catholicism as the world's largest religion, I can be assured that I will fit right in - at least superficially.
Meanwhile, prospective Muslim Immigrants to Quebec can be assured that there is at least one server in a Subway Restaurant in Gatineau who has their dietary laws at the forefront of his mind.
8 comments:
You're not Arabic??? and all this time I've been telling people I have an Arabic friend...
Sorry Phil, you can no longer say, "but my good friend is Arabic" after every anti-Arabic thing you say.
Hard to believe people think you're Arabic when you have three blond sisters. But you are pretty dark.
I'm with Phil... I always tell people about my Arabic cousin John who speaks Arabic.
Our family definitely comes in a few shades.
If it makes you feel good, Jono and Phil, you can still say that I'm Arabic.
More than three decades ago I had someone come up to me in Prague, Czechoslovakia, and start speaking in German. I can't imagine anyone thinking that I, of all people, am German.
But, returning to the topic at hand, I don't think you look particularly Dutch, John. You could be Greek! And do take that as a compliment.
Hmm, I can't see how you'd be mistaken for a German. Perhaps Germans wear bowties? And I do take my hellenistic looks as a compliment, all the Greeks I know are excellent people.
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