Le mercredi

In France, mercredi is not a day like all the others. This is evidenced by a petite anecdote (little story) from another assistant friend of mine in Nevers, Geby Keenan. Gaby teaches in les écoles primaires (elementary schools). Her goal in these places is to expose little kids to foreign language in general, but to English specifically. English is a new subject in les écoles primaires, and many of the instituteurs (teachers) don't speak English fluently enough to teach it to 6 year-olds-- this should be warning sign number one. Thus, the role of the English assistant in these institutions is key, lest the first exposure kids have to the language be gâché (ruined) by incorrect pronunciation or ridiculous phrases. In any case, Gaby always has amusing stories about how her kids react to her lessons, and these stories can often be revealing about la culture française (french culture).

One day, Gaby is teaching a lesson about cognates, that is words that are the same in French as in English. There are many of these-- I sometimes try to show this in my franglais-- and the exist for many reasons, but the ones that speak most to les enfants (children) are words the French have borrowed from English in the last century. Some of these are sandwich, cookie, star (as in a celebrity), mug (coffee mug), and week-end.

This last word is something sacred for the French. In France, the weekend is not to be disturbed. There is a national myth about the time people spend with their families à table (having a meal), en promenade (going for a walk), and generally pour profiter du temps (taking advantage of the extra time they have). Almost all businesses are closed on Sunday, and even on Saturdays there are more darkened windows than during the week. The week-end has a special place for relaxing and spending time with friends and family. Obviously, then, kids adore the weekend. Their parents are around, they don't have 8 to 10 hours of school each day, and they can either hang around with their friends, or go play sports. Popular sports for children in Nevers are le foot (soccer) le pony (pony club), and handball (handball).

When Gaby asked her students about the weekend, they explained to her that it's like a little vacation during the week. Cute, right? Well, to practice their days of the week, Gaby asked what days the weekend consists of. They replied Saturday, Sunday, and (?) Wednesday. On Wednesday, French children don't go to school. The lycéens (high schoolers) do, but kids under the age of 13 have off on Wednesdays. They only have four days of lessons a week, so of course it seems natural to them that the day they don't go to school is also called the weekend. They missed the part when it's just they who don't work, and that it's not at the fin (end) of the semaine (week). I guess English isn't pervading the French language as profoundly as some linguists have worried it might.

So Wednesdays aren't hump day for french children. They're le week-end. But my favorite thing about le merecredi (Wednesdays) is this: on the first Wendesday of every month, at noon, at every school in France, the emergency alarms sound. This is to test that they work, bien sûr (of course). Forget that it doesn't test if the students and teachers know how to evacuate the school. The important part is that le joli son (the pretty sound) of the alarm is heard loud and clear. Pas de soucis, tout le monde, on est là. Si jamais il y a un accident, les allarmes sonneront ! (No worries, everyone, we're here. If there's ever an accident, the alarms will ring!) If you're ever in France on the first Wednesday of the month, you will not miss midi (noon). You can't help but be somewhere where the alarms are audible, since every school has them. And if you've forgotten to change your calendar, today you'll remember to do so.

This year, I happen to not work on Wednesdays. This is great, since, unlike the real weekend, everything is open as usual, so I can get both important and frivolous errands done. Vive le mercredi !