Speaks for itself

When I saw this garden plaque, I thought it was just the thing for Silly Saturday.

It was another morning with Thanh today, and he'd brought a list of words and phrases he'd gotten from a British film.  So I was having to translate British slang and colloquialisms as well as American.  When we look at a word, Thanh always wants to know if he could substitute another similar word for that one.  Sometimes it seems like splitting hairs, trying to explain the subtleties between them, but I don't want him to make a false equivalence.  Then we read an article about malnourishment and deaths in the gray whale population, and then one about a new bill that would forbid any detention of foster kids who violate court orders designed to keep them safe.  The Seattle Times had published an editorial in support of the bill, and this was a letter from the State Superior Court Judges Association talking about why it would not be a good idea.  It led us into an interesting discussion, as I explained to him what the current law is and how that would change under the new one.  I have to say that in my view, as someone who has spent a lot of time working with troubled youth, this bill would be a very bad move.  It will be interested to see what becomes of it.