Time for some glee
- Aline Yamashita
- Jul 5
- 3 min read
There was always joy in my preschool classroom. During a time when we enjoyed open-air classrooms at M.U. Lujan Elementary School, we listened to the rain fall. It was raining hard and I watched through the louvers.
Mesmerized, I shared with the class, “It’s raining cats and dogs!” Steven bounced over and looked. He looked some more and said, "Aline, I don’t see them. Where are the cats and dogs?”
During my stint as an assessor for the Gifted and Talented program, a verbal vocabulary test was given. Sitting in front of me was an energetic four-year-old. “Join. What does 'join' mean?” he asked, then continued, “Oh, I know what that means. That’s what my mom and dad smoke!”
We chuckled. However, the parents were not as amused. Of course, we encouraged families to be more mindful of what their kids were observing.
Humor celebrates achievement. While I was teaching at AOLG, a student was extremely anxious about speaking in front of the class. So, I had her read seated. Then, I had her stand and read. I nodded as I stood next to her. Eventually, she read in front of the class. We cheered when she volunteered to read. One day, she had a bent straw in her mouth and entered the classroom as if she were snorkeling in. Her sense of humor boasted her newfound confidence. My heart smiled.
After teaching an evening course, I made my way to Sam Choi’s to join the cousins. Road work was being done in Barrigada. There were no detour signs directing cars to alternate streets, and lighting was limited. Incredibly, I found myself at the head of a long parade of cars –the worst person for the job. I drove where I thought it made sense.
Ay yai yai!
We ended up in someone’s yard, where we were greeted with shotguns and a lot of yelling. Eeek! I got out of my car and apologized. We managed to convey the message to the last car to reverse, allowing each of us to back out in turn. That new point person, who was now the lead car, did a much better job at helping us find the way out. OMG! It’s a little funny now—but not much.
At Sam Choi’s, after sharing my survival story, I ordered a gin and tonic. I took a sip, looked at Len, and said the tonic water was flat. Len said, “Houston, we have a problem.” The bartender took care of it. Then, after alittle while, I was ready for a refill. So, I said, “Houston, please give me another.” Len gave me a look and said, “That’s not his name.”
Humor requires intelligence—I hadn’t seen the movie. We all laughed.
Eric’s vocabulary is very good. As adults, most of us learn the societal rules of staying silent when it is wiser,—or at least masking the truth. Eric understood the terms "obese" and "thin."
Yup, you know what’s coming.
At his worksite, Eric greeted a man with, "Good morning, Mr. Obese.” The more mature adult responded with, “Yeah, I know. I need to lose weight.” Then he smiled. Eric means no malice.
But he’snot always lucky. During another encounter, when Eric greeted someone with, “Good morning, Mr. Obese,” the man looked at him and said, “Get away, you freak.” Eric had no clue that what he said was inappropriate. Job Coach Lane apologized and quickly removed Eric from the situation.
And, yes, we review over and over how not to tell someone they are obese or thin. It does not stick.
Sometimes, what is humorous to some is not to others.
Humor is an effective interactive strategy. During a campaign meeting in the lovely village of Dededo, I decided to use knock-knock jokes to get stage attention.
“Knock, knock!” I said. The group responded, “Who's there?” “Anita.” “Anita who?” “Anita tell you Dededo rocks!”
“Knock, knock!” “Who’s there?” “Joaquin!” “Joaquin who?” “Joaquin work together to make Guam better.”
And “Knock, knock!” “Who’s there?” “Olive!” “Olive who?” “Olive you!!”
The crowd laughed and cheered.
Aline Yamashita is a mom, a teacher and former senator. She served in the 31st and 32nd Guam Legislatures. Send feedback to aline4families@gmail.com.
