encore
Misinterpreted
An Air Force staff sergeant’s knowledge of the German language is put to the test when he accompanies an officer on a guided tour of a castle in Germany.
While stationed at Bitburg air base, Germany, during the early 1970s, I had the opportunity to learn German. Whenever I was stationed in a foreign country, I took advantage of the opportunity to learn the language of the country. Since I was only stationed in Germany for two years, I learned enough to have some fluency with some subjects, especially if I could anticipate comments and concerns of the other party.
At that time, I was an E-5 disbursement accounting specialist. After a year-plus of taking language courses, I occasionally was asked to interpret for the Special Services Unit for the 36th Combat Support Group (U.S. Air Forces in Europe), especially after normal working hours when the local civilian had departed for the night.
During my last year at the base, a young second lieutenant arrived and was put in charge of the unit. He came from Hawaii and didn’t speak any German, but he did have a car and liked to drive around the surrounding countryside. He was interested in viewing some of the castles in the area, but he lacked even a basic understanding of the language. I agreed to go with him on a Saturday and interpret what I could.
I will always have fond memories of one castle. At the entrance, we purchased our tickets and waited for a group to form and the guide to show up. The guide was a very nice German girl who didn’t speak a word of English but was polite and considerate of the two Americans in the group. She would go into a room and explain points of interest. I could catch a little more than half of what she was saying and relay the information as best I could to the young lieutenant. She always allowed me time to interpret what she had said. The tour was going relatively smoothly, and we were having a nice time.
Toward the end of the tour, we went out one of the doors of the castle, and our guide proceeded to point to a window and relay some interesting fact. I had no idea what she said, and I was getting ready to continue the tour, when she stopped, looked at me, and indicated that I was to translate. Not wanting to be rude, I turned to the lieutenant, pointed to the window, and for 30 seconds explained that I had no idea what she had just said.
Our guide seemed satisfied with my “translation,” and we proceeded on the tour of the castle.
MO
— Wayne Finley is a retired Air Force captain. He lives in Dayton, Ohio. For submission information, see page 6.
Tell Your Story Submit your service-related adventures (or mishaps) of 450 to 500 words by email to
encore@moaa.org or by mail to Encore Editor, 201 N. Washington St., Alexandria, VA 22314. All submissions will be considered for publication.
124 MILITARY OFFICER SEPTEMBER 2013
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100 |
Page 101 |
Page 102 |
Page 103 |
Page 104 |
Page 105 |
Page 106 |
Page 107 |
Page 108 |
Page 109 |
Page 110 |
Page 111 |
Page 112 |
Page 113 |
Page 114 |
Page 115 |
Page 116 |
Page 117 |
Page 118 |
Page 119 |
Page 120 |
Page 121 |
Page 122 |
Page 123 |
Page 124 |
Page 125 |
Page 126 |
Page 127 |
Page 128