Never miss a word of photo: get French Word-A-Day delivered by email, here. Pictured: our daughter, Jackie, at the écurie, where today's story takes place... By the way, is anybody else as terrified by horses as I am?
zone de confort (zown deuh kohn fohr)
: comfort zone
.
Audio File: Listen to Jean-Marc pronounce the following French words:
Download MP3 or Wav file
sortir de votre zone de confort = move out of your comfort zone
oser quitter votre zone de confort = dare to leave your comfort zone
The classic Bescherelle, the complete guide to French verb conjugation. Read the 5 star reviews, and order, here.
.
A Day in a French Life... by Kristin Espinasse
Out of One's Comfort Zone
At the horse stables where my daughter has her riding lesson, Jules and I are sitting on the freshly-mowed pelouse. Mom is wearing her bubblegum-blue poncho and her panama hat with the red silk roses. She has spread out her Mexican tapis, the bright blue one with all the giant red fish, making our trespass even more conspicuous.
I try to hold my tongue, after all, I have recited enough rules for the day (earlier, in the village of Tulette, I noticed Mom making a beeline toward the café, where two Moroccan men sat smoking. "Let's not talk to anyone!" I suggested, not wanting to get involved in another names-and-telephone-numbers exchange. Mom indicated she wouldn't, but eventually, mon adorable chipie de maman, left me at the table in order to chat with the shopkeepers, making friends and appointments as she went...)
Back on the grass at the stables, I spoke: "This isn't such a good idea," I said, of the blanket and the feather oreillers that Mom had dragged out to the lawn beside the horse arena. "In France people don't lie on the grass!"
Mom's response was to rap on the feather pillow, ordering me to take a seat! Next, like a starfish, she threw out her arms and legs, fell back on the pillow, and sky-gazed. "AHHHHHH!"
My back toward the barn and to the riders who were surely reporting us, I sat there, crookedly, unwilling to relax into the comfortable pillow beside me. Leaning sharply on my elbow, my eyes scanned the horse park, where I began questioning the quality of grass....
Perhaps different grass has different rules? I wondered. This grass here, with its wheat tones and dry patches... was different, wasn't it?, from Paris Luxembourg Gardens grass. There, you wouldn't dare relax (...or have the pelouse police on your back!).
My elbow grew sore and my back, at such a crooked angle, tired... along with my rules and resolutions. "Go ahead. Lie back!" Mom suggested, eager to share the world from her eyes-to-the-sky perspective.
When my head hit the pillow the first thing I noticed were the leaves in the tree above me. SUCH GREEN LEAVES! With the sun shining down through them, the tips were saturated with color.
The feuilles, shaped like giant outstretched hands, waved in the breeze, capturing all of my attention so that when the stable-owner marched up and towered over me, I could not see her for the tree leaves!
I scrambled to a seated position in time to be read my rights. Surely we were in trouble for suffocating the grass!
But, instead of a reprimand, all I heard were these inviting words: Profitez, mesdames, de cette magnifique journée. With that, the stable owner slipped by, a smile and kindness still sparkling in her eyes.
***
Le Coin Commentaires
Corrections, feedback, and stories of your own are most welcome here, in the comments box.
Let's create a fun list together....
100 (or so) Ways to Step Out of Your Comfort Zone!
I'll begin - with a few goals of my own:
1. Ask the baker whether you might take her picture!
2. Go on a solo road trip
3. Give a talk at a library (or a school), sharing an idea or a hobby
4. Plant bird-of-paradise next to your mailbox
5. Stop the car next time something catches your eye (like the lady who sat out in front of her home, knitting)
6. Paint happy stars on a door, chez vous!
7. Tuck wildflowers into your hatband
8. Write a 40-page novel... for your eyes only and just for fun!
9... (Your turn to leave some tips here in the comments box!)
French Vocabulary
une écurie = horse stable
la pelouse (also le gazon) = grass
le tapis = rug
la chipie (pronounced "she-pee") = rascal, little devil
mon adorable chipie de maman = my lively, mischievious, light-hearted and charming Mom
un oreiller = pillow
la feuille = leaf
Profitez, mesdames, de cette magnifique journée = Seize and enjoy this magnificent day!
On a recent walk near the river, Mom gathered wildflowers (chèvrefeuille, or honeysuckle, and genêt, or broom) for her hatband, or ruban de chapeau.
When you purchase any item from Amazon, using the following links to enter the store, your purchase helps to support this free language journal. Merci d'avance!
French Demystified: A Self-Teaching Guide
I'll Never Be French (no matter what I do): Living in a Small Village in Brittany. Read review for this memoir.
Wicker basket. For the farmer's market, for the beach, for a carry-on, for a picnic... (that's my mom, Jules's basket, pictured below!) Buy this multipurpose "panier" here.
