Day 17: Tell Me More
Using translator the other day, I asked Viktors, “Tell me something I don’t know about you”.
“I can tell you nothing.” That is what translated anyway.
The last few days he has dropped more and more nuggets of info. He’s comfortable now. My boys (up to this point in their little lives) tell me everything. Usually at bedtime. Always in private when no one else is listening. And usually with the instruction to keep it between us. Viktors has opened up with little bits of info when we’ve been alone.
He has 2 brothers, they are 15 and 17. One is in his orphanage with him. One is tall and skinny, the other is shorter with big muscles. He speaks of them often.
He rides dirt bikes. And boxes! He saw me put my retainer in and told me he has one too. Then he said, “I…wear…that…” and he motioned boxing moves. I tried to not look shocked as I asked, “You do this…” and I pretended to box him. “Yes,” he gave me his crooked smile. I think he likes being mysterious. Just to clarify that he wasn’t telling me he was a fighter, I took it one step further. “Do you do this?” And I kicked the pretend person on the ground. “No, mom, no.” His crooked smile still on his face, he motioned putting on his head pads and boxing gloves.
Here’s the kicker, no pun intended. I put them to bed, and I was explaining that the Latvian audio bible we got him was solar-powered. He said, “Hey mom…this…Russian.”
“What? That is speaking in Russian? Can you understand it?”
He said, “Yes, I Russian. I speak Russian and Latvian.”
“Remember the other day I said tell me something I wouldn’t know? That would have been a good thing to tell me!”
He laughed.
“So when you are talking on the phone to your director at your orphanage, what are you speaking?”
“Russian”
“When you are speaking to your chaperone, what are you speaking?”
“Russian”
“Do you speak better Russian or Latvian?”
Emphatically, “Russian…Latvian umm so-so” Ha! And here I bought him a Latvian bible, Latvian audio bible and have been using Latvian translator apps!
“Were you born in Russia or Latvia?”
“Russia”
“You are crazy. Very crazy.” His smile never left his face.
Dad entered the room carrying his iPad using Russian translator audio to speak in Russian, “I didn’t know you could speak Russian.” Viktors just smiled. Then dad typed (and it spoke) “Stop eating all my food.” (It’s a running joke between Steve and Viktors because the boy eats so incredibly much!) And he laughed more.
There is much to this little boy. Sometimes I’m dying to know all there is to know. Sometimes I’m thankful I know nothing. All I know is what I see in this house. And it’s probably best that way.
