Let's take it back to September for a moment, shall we? On the 21st night of September (bah dee ah), my dad celebrates his birthday, and being the good, loving daughter that I am, I didn't want to shirk sending him a birthday card simply because of my transatlantic whims. So, a few days after arriving, I went to the book/paper store near my house to search for a card. Armed with only enough Greek in my system to order coffee, I was more than a little lost while gazing at the wall of greeting cards (sidenote: There is an entire section of the card wall devoted to cards for "Welcoming Your Twins!" If you thought I was kidding about the twin phenomenon, I hope this supplements my claim that multiple births seem to be a thing here). Begrudgingly, I was faced with no other choice but to consult the saleslady with a sheepish smile and a gentle plea for English. She patiently guided me through the various cards and helped me find a birthday one that I later contentedly sent off to Dad.
I hadn't really given that card or that day's events a second thought until recently.
You see, the card I bought for my dad closed with the kind phrase s'agapo panda, which means I love you always. Or so I was initially aware. Many weeks later, I once again found myself in a bookstore where I was simply browsing for leisure time. During my perusal of the stacks, one non-fiction book jumped out at me. Why? Because I recognized the word that was the title: Panda. And the cover art of this book was a lovely photograph of a snuggly Giant Panda bear nibbling some bamboo and looking beautifully morose with those big black circular patches of fur around its eyes. Had I been duped by the card lady? Did panda mean always or did panda mean... panda?
Let's revisit the text of the birthday card again. This time, I want to focus on the writing that was on the very cover of the card. The front read, Xronia Polla!, which the card lady informed me meant Happy Birthday! Well, as the days have been passing and bringing us closer and closer to Christmas, the local town decorating committee has been adoring the street lamps with Christmas lights strung into the shapes of holiday icons like bells, holly branches, the star of Bethlehem, and also the words... Xronia Polla! Wait a minute, I thought that meant Happy Birthday?! Was this some round-about religious tradition referring to a Happy Birthday to the Baby Jesus? Or had I been doubly duped by the card lady... Had I actually bought my dad a card that said, Merry Christmas! I love you, Panda Bear! ?
Worried that I had inadvertently sent my dad a card intended for a Chinese fuzz-ball celebrating a Christian winter holiday, I consulted Angeliki, my Greek teacher, during our next class. She informed me that panda means, yes, both always AND panda. The explanation she gave for this word was this: "When the Greeks were developing their modern language, they realized that we rarely say 'panda [bear]' in every-day conversation, so it would be fine not to make up a Greek word for it and just leave it as panda even though that's the word we were already using for always." Well, that was as good an explanation as any, so I was content to know that my card had, in fact, said I love you always and not I love you, Panda Bear.
Now, this matter of Christmas.
Angeliki informed me that Xronia Polla! is the Greek way of wishing someone well for any number of occasions. They use it for literally almost everything. It's your birthday? Xronia Polla! You're retiring? Xronia Polla! It's your anniversary? Xronia Polla! You're pregnant with twins? Xronia Polla! And yes, Merry Christmas, too.
The direct translation is "many years" or "many happy returns." So, any occasion where you would want to wish someone continued happiness in years to come is fair game for xronia polla, which, as you can imagine numbers many.
The bottom line? I had not been duped by the card lady. She has been confirmed as helpful, kind, and honest. But, thanks to the Greek language, should you ever come across a Panda Bear on Christmas Day, you can send along your Seasons Greetings in the same way you would tell your dad Happy Birthday.
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