.... random rants and rambles. no agenda. yet.

In one of life's more surreal experiences that only happen when you're getting old, last night I assessed the fingerspelling skills of 18 Brownies, so that they could get their Communicator badges. K assessed their body language, and C assessed, er, their French. Don't ask! It was fun and hilarious!

Basically, all they had to do was ask me my name in BSL, and then tell me theirs. Some of them were really good, and I felt like pulling them aside and saying, "You could be an interpreter when you grow up, you know? Yeah, we are kind of desperate here"... and some of them were OK, and some of them were... erm, not very good.

There was the one who sat down and said to me - she was the only one who spoke to me - "What do I have to do?!" Errrr. I tried to show her she was to ask my name, but it totally didn't work, and she ended up copying everything I signed, until we both sort of sat there staring at each other in confusion, surrounded by a small group of 7-10 year olds, all looking at me. Eventually, she got it and started spelling out random letters to me, while a small girl behind her was shaking her head with wide eyes, to tell me that wasn't her name...! Bless them. She got there in the end, and came back later on, laughing her head off, and signed the whole thing to me all over again with a proud face. Ahhhhhhh.

The best part was probably when K told them, "J can't hear anything at all" and one wee girl looked so amazed, as if that was totally impossible and she so didn't believe it. I looked at her and nodded seriously that K was right, and smiled because it was cool, but her mouth got wider and wider, so I opened my mouth too and we looked at each other, open mouthed; me kidding, and her serious, as only an 8 year old can be.

Ahhhhh kids. Luvverly! And yes, they all passed and got their Communicator badges, of course they did!