I have mentioned the little nifty trains that run by our city before. This train (it is called the tram) can take you pretty much anywhere you want to go, in a very short amount of time. For this reason, they are almost always very crowded.
When you get into a tram, you can hear an announcer’s voice saying something about babies, the elderly and I distinctly hear the word for “pregnant woman”. I must admit my local language is still very primitive and I can only pick up words here and there. But I have learned the word for “pregnant”. Plus, there are also some stickers on the windows with a picture of a mom and baby, a baby stroller, an elderly person and, you guessed it, a pregnant woman. Using the very obvious context clues, I can safely assume that these categories of people have preferential seating. In fact, I have seen youth get up from their seats to give room to an older lady. I have observed an older man get on the tram; someone immediately said something, quickly prompting several who were seating to give up their seat. It is a show of a civilized and humane society who respects their elders and moms. It truly is a beautiful sight.
My question is: WHY WON’T ANYONE GIVE UP THEIR SEAT FOR ME? I feel very pregnant. My lower back hurts. I’ve been wearing maternity clothes for a month now. Heck, I have a huge gut. You have seen my belly pictures, I know I look pregnant. Do I just look fat to them?
To be fair, I have been given a seat. Once. I was so happy people could finally tell I was pregnant and know I’ m not just fat. But now I wonder if the girl was just going to get up anyway, or if she actually realized I was pregnant. Because since then, every time I’ve gotten on the tram, I have been left to the mercy of the hand rails, performing a sad little balancing act of belly, purse and my own clumsy self.
So now my new favorite game to play on the tram is called: “Who can tell this lady is pregnant (not fat) and will give up their seat for her?” I have been trying different strategies like rubbing my belly ( and sticking it out real good), wobbling or placing one hand on my lower back and one on my belly. Neither strategy has worked so far. Any suggestions on what I should try?
Disclaimer: I don’t really care about getting a seat on the tram, but this is the first time ever in my life that I get to take advantage of this preferential seating deal. Well, I guess I do care about getting a seat, just so I can win my new game.
3 comments:
I think you may be viewing this all wrong. You can be so proud that you are still so tiny that folks are scared to offend you by assuming you are pregnant. Just kidding of course.
I wish I had some clever ideas on how to "announce" your pregnancy to these folks on the tram, but honestly I have nothing. You will have to keep us updated on your progress though.
Maybe you should put on a t-shirt saying I'm pregnant in their language.
Se eu ficar uma grávida as fancy and skinny as you it will be awesome!
ps.: a mãe tá preocupada que vc ñ manda noticias há alguns dias!
Love.
Update: I had a lady ask me if I was pregnant today and she gave up her seat! But there has been at least 3 other times when no one has gotten up... But we are making progress here and no need for a t-shirt! ha.
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