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Body Spanish!

Friends,
Does language affect body language? Sure, different cultures have different ways of expressing themselves (Italians move their hands a lot more than Brits), but, does the same person change their body language when they change the language in which they’re thinking? Perhaps. This weekend, I noticed something peculiar. When I saw someone that looked like they came from the U.S. (a vast majority of people in Cancún), I would greet them with a measured head nod, lowering my head as they passed by (keeping a straight face). When I saw someone whom I imagined spoke Spanish, my sub-conscious greeting was a brief and brisk chin rise (all while flashing a smile and raising my eyebrows). The language I was thinking in at the time directly impacted my body language. Perhaps there is such a thing as body Spanish! Then again, it may be the difference between a “howdy m’am” and a “:what’s up?” Kind of tempts me to alternate the TV sound by quarters between SAP and the English narration during ‘Murica Bowl this Sunday. Will watching the team of the national bird playing against the team of national fervor, competing to win the ”world” championship (in which only US teams compete) in Spanish somehow make it feel more cosmopolitan? Perhaps. Then again, as usual, perhaps I’ve taken this fleeting notion too far. That said, I think that regardless of the language you’re using when you bite into a donut, the warm feeling that comes with it should be universal.

Happy Friday!

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