"Go quick, come back quicker"

[conuly]

My mother used to say that to me when I left the house. I guess it comes from French, or maybe even Walloon originally - I've never heard anybody say that but Mommy and Bonne-Maman, and I think Bonne-Maman told me once that her mother used to say it to her, so there you go.

And now I don't know anybody who says it anymore.

I took my mother's actual number off my phone, but I left the entry for "Mommy" there. I know that if *I* find a phone that's unlocked the first thing I do is call "Mom" or "Dad" to let them know where whoever-it-is left their phone, but obviously that's not going to work now. Be a bit weird if it did! Still, I couldn't stand to actually remove the entry, so now it's just a name that leads nowhere.

Comments

[foms]

That << figure de style >> rings a vague bell, with me (from Montreal, living in Ottawa).

I just counted and found that over three percent of my 'phone contacts are dead people. It seems that either I'm a ghoul or I have trouble letting go.

[conuly]

Now, I've always heard that sugar tarts are one of the things that French-Canadians have in common with Belgians, so maybe this is another one.