Cachorro

This morning whilst praying I thought of the Portuguese word 'cachorro' which in Portugal refers to a young dog/puppy but in Brazil, where they speak a form of Portuguese which has evolved differently over time from mainland Portugal, with differences in grammar, pronunciation and vocabulary, they generally say 'cachorro' to refer to all dogs. In Portugal, the general term for dog is 'cão' sounding very similar to the English word, cow! All this serves to show that it is easy to misinterpret, misunderstand and actually, mishear another. When I was training to be an English as an Additional Language teacher, we were given the example of the word 'skinny' which could be complimentary to one and offensive to another. We need to be careful not to jump to conclusions too hastily about someone's meaning, heart and intention and, then, not to gossip. Also, in the same vein as Chinese whispers, our words when passed along, could falsely colour people's opinions of another. Proverb 12:28 tells us, "A perverse person stirs up conflict, and a gossip separates close friends"; Ephesians 4:29: "Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up" and finally, Proverbs 26:20 "Without wood a fire goes out; without a gossip a quarrel dies down". Don't judge another's words and then gossip.