The Lowe-Down

As I walk through the school grounds during lunchtime, I am struck by the fascinating mosaic of conversations around me. Teen slang abounds, sometimes incomprehensible, sometimes bafflingly loud. From group chants to furtive whispers, from bursts of laughter to shouts of frustrations, our communication is varied and sometimes challenging to make sense of. It’s a reminder that communication, while universal, can be complex and nuanced, especially across different age groups and even more so amongst a mix of ethnicities, religions, and backgrounds. In a diverse school community, these linguistic and cultural differences can sometimes be magnified. Conversations can become tangled webs of misunderstanding, with words and gestures often lost in translation.

Language is a powerful tool. If I yell out “Aussie, Aussie, Aussie” to a crowd of Australians they will all know what to do and the reply will come back, “Oi, Oi, Oi!”

The “Aussie, Aussie, Aussie” cry can be heard at sporting stadiums, on school camps and in all sorts of large gatherings around the country. It feels uniquely Australian!

And yet it isn’t! Its origins are actually English. Well before the Aussies started their chant, the English were using their own version – “Oggy, Oggy, Oggy!” And what is an Oggy I hear you ask? It’s a Cornish pie. The story has it that tin-miners’ wives shouted “Oggy! Oggy! Oggy!” down mine shafts either to alert them that their pasties were ready, or to warn them that their pasties were about to be dropped down to them. The miners would then reply “Oi, Oi, Oi” to let them know it was all clear to lower them in. Eventually the cry was picked up by English sports fans and at some point, Australia claimed its own version.

But what if you aren’t familiar with the Australian version? I feel for the poor old Cornish tourist who finds themselves at an Australian sporting venue, hearing the vaguely familiar chant and wondering when the meat pies were going to start being thrown!

And if they happen to be visiting in Spring, why not terrorize them even more and take them out magpie spotting! The Eurasian magpie which they would be familiar with is thought to rank among the world’s most intelligent creatures. These Magpies have shown the ability to make and use tools, imitate human speech, grieve, play games, and work in teams. They are particularly well known for their songs and were once popular as cagebirds. They are also not at all aggressive. Australian magpies on the other hand are a completely different species to magpies in the rest of the world – they only got the name because of their coloring – and they are scary! A poorly informed British tourist out walking during swooping season is going to be in for quite the shock!

And if terrorizing them with magpies and meat pies isn’t enough, make sure you tell them that the weather gets quite warm here, so they are better off wearing shorts and not pants. That may sound like sensible advice to you but in England, ‘pants’ refers to ‘underwear’ so they might interpret your suggestion a little differently to what you expected.

Language is powerful but it is also very dependent on context. Sometimes things that seem harmless or obvious to us may come across very differently to others. We live within a diverse community of people who hold many different faiths and worldviews, who come from a broad range of cultural backgrounds, who have different life experiences, different home lives, different interests, and responsibilities.

We need to be mindful that what seems funny to one person may be hurtful to another; what seems obvious to one group may be perplexing to another; what feels unifying to some may feel alienating to others. Does that mean we just don’t speak? Of course not. But it does mean that when we do speak, our intent should always be to uplift, encourage or include others. And to do this we need to take a moment to consider how our speech and manner might come across to those who hear us.

Matthew records these words of Jesus, “It’s your heart, not the dictionary, that gives meaning to your words. A good person produces good deeds and words season after season. An evil person is a blight on the orchard. Let me tell you something: Every one of these careless words is going to come back to haunt you. There will be a time of Reckoning. Words are powerful; take them seriously. Words can be your salvation. Words can also be your damnation.” (Matthew 12:33-34 The Message)

We won’t always get our communication right, but intent is important. If our priority is to speak to others with respect and integrity, then we are off to a pretty good start. Throw in a little compassion and understanding and we can probably avoid all sorts of unnecessary conflict. We can and should celebrate diversity as a source of strength and richness. We recognize that our differences make us unique, but it’s our shared humanity that binds us together. So, let’s embrace the challenge of communication across cultures and generations, knowing that in doing so, we can foster deeper connections and a greater sense of belonging for all.

The last thing we want to do is leave someone feeling like a terrified British tourist, terrorized by magpies, paranoid that someone is about to throw a meat pie at them and wondering if they have really made the best choice of clothing for the situation!