What is a Moose?

Today I woke up feeling a little bit sick, but thankfully, after a four-hour siesta I was feeling quite a bit better. I decided to sit out on the patio and enjoy the “quiet” (which would definitely not be considered quiet at home) and try to get feeling all the way better for the mothers day celebration the youth were putting on at the mission this afternoon. Five minutes after I sat down three girls came walking around the corner and sat down on the bench next to me and began asking me questions. Talking with these girls turned my day right around and somehow got me feeling better than any medication could have.
The children that came today were filled with so much joy; joy that can brighten anyone’s day. As some others and myself were visiting with the kids, they took a great interest in Colleen’s laptop that was sitting on my lap. I was going to begin writing this blog, but had no idea what to share with all of you, there is so much that we have experienced here. As they were staring at foreign words on the screen, Colleen had the idea to show them pictures of Montana. We showed them pictures of Legendary Lodge, Carroll, Glacier Park…beautiful pictures of our home that has a landscape so different from the place they know. I was struck by how different the world I grew up in was from what these children knew when a picture of a moose head came up and one girl asked if it was a horse. I am able to speak some Spanish, but trying to explain what a moose is posed a rather difficult task. I told them that it was bigger than a horse, to which they replied, oh, giraffe? Ah, not quite, shorter than that. Logically, the next animal they came up with was elephant, which isn’t quite the ideal description of a moose either. I ended up telling that a moose is an animal similar to a horse, but larger.
The language barrier that exists here creates a challenge with every encounter, but the people here are so patient and willing to help us understand. The kids especially have been wonderful teachers. The girls who came and visited with me today will never know that they made my day. Their excitement and curiosity about the cold place called Montana, their patience with my poor Spanish, and their smiles that cross any language barrier are lessons that I will always remember.
God Bless,
Kellie Kalbfleisch