Pasamos Agosto

Chile has all these sayings that I am just beginning to hear but I just love them, and love being "in" on their humor about life. As I was shivering at the church after our teaching session last night, some sisters told me about Pasamos Agosto. It's when old people (60+) sigh in relief that they've lived through August when fragile people sometimes die from the cold. Not that it's very cold, but inside drafty unheated buildings it is often colder than it is outside where the sun usually warms things up. So as I left, I said, "Just two more days," and they smiled and gave me a warmer than usual hug,
denying that I could be old enough to celebrate the day.

And speaking of drafty, I suggested to our missionaries and to Jay that the tragedy of two Elders dying in their sleep of carbon monoxide poisoning in Taiwan couldn't happen in Chile, but he is insisting on getting CO detectors for their house anyway. No worries about ours; our water heater is outside.

Another weather-related saying is "Be careful, it might just be veranito de San Juan." Verano is summer and veranito is a little summer in the middle of winter--a tease that tricks you into going out unprepared for the cold that will inevitably return. I've seen no one willing to brave the outdoors here  in the shorts that are common in Utah junior high schools as the snow is coming down. Quite the contrary: everyone is dressed as if they are headed to the south pole--face wraps, hats, layers of clothing including tights and overcoats.

So tomorrow I'm preparing to celebrate old people's El Primero de Septiembre Fiesta--assuming that we successfully pasamos agosto! Stay tuned..........