A new take on a proverb from Zimbabwe

[sonia]

Brendan Taaffe was one of the teachers at Village Harmony Oregon singing camp this year.

He taught a couple of songs from Zimbabwe, and told us stories about his visits there. "If you can talk, you can sing. If you can walk, you can dance," is a Zimbabwean proverb posted on many American elementary school walls. He says the typical American interpretation is skewed, though.

Zimbabwe's Shona language is tonal, so if they're talking, they're already singing. Brendan told us a story of watching a pair of Zimbabwean men near a live band and thinking, "I wish I could dance like that." Then he realized they were simply walking by. Their walk is already a dance.

Comments

[jesse_the_k]

Ah! Another problem with cultural appropriation is we don't truly appreciate the cu,true we're stealing.

[sonia]

Yep. The "Indian giver" story came up recently, too, how European invaders were taken aback when they were expected to continue passing along a community peace pipe. And why don't we have "European taker" as a common phrase?