Episode 46 · Everything, and what's next

Thirty episodes ago, you arrived at Sahet el-Teeneh with a key to Téta Nabiha's flat and a head full of half-remembered words.

Since then, you've learned to order coffee, shop with Sett Sana, follow Dr. Hala's strict advice, and even navigate Jad's chaotic schedule.

You have learned how to exist in the present. So, if I were to ask you about your new life...

shu bta3mel kill yom?

شو بتعمل كل يوم؟ — What do you do every day? · shu bta3mel kill yom?

What do you do every day? Let's break it down to celebrate how far you've come.

شو بتعمل كل يوم؟ — What do you do every day? · shu bta3mel kill yom?

shu is what. bta3mel is you do, for a male. If asking a woman, it's bta3mle. And kill yom means every day.

شو بتعمل كل يوم؟ — What do you do every day? · shu bta3mel kill yom?

Say it with me, nice and steady. shu bta3mel kill yom?

شو بتعمل كل يوم؟ — What do you do every day? · shu bta3mel kill yom?

Listen to that deep 3 in the middle of the verb. Once more, naturally: shu bta3mel kill yom?

شو بتعمل كل يوم؟ — What do you do every day? · shu bta3mel kill yom?

To answer that question, you now rely on the three pillars of everyday survival in Beirut.

3inde, baddé, lezim.

عندي، بدّي، لازم — I have, I want, I must · 3inde, baddé, lezim

With these three little words, you have built your entire daily routine.

عندي، بدّي، لازم — I have, I want, I must · 3inde, baddé, lezim

3inde is I have. baddé is I want. lezim is I must. Say the trio with me: 3inde, baddé, lezim.

عندي، بدّي، لازم — I have, I want, I must · 3inde, baddé, lezim

Because of these, you can tell Maya: baddé 2ahwe.

عندي، بدّي، لازم — I have, I want, I must · 3inde, baddé, lezim

You can tell Dr. Hala: 3inde maw3ad.

عندي، بدّي، لازم — I have, I want, I must · 3inde, baddé, lezim

And you can finally tell Jad when you're too busy: lezim rou7.

عندي، بدّي، لازم — I have, I want, I must · 3inde, baddé, lezim

Look how much you can do. Let's recap these present-tense anchors. First: shu bta3mel kill yom? ... shu bta3mel kill yom? ... What do you do every day? And your lifelines: 3inde, baddé, lezim ... 3inde, baddé, lezim ... I have, I want, I must.

Just as you're feeling incredibly competent, Abu Naji walks over with your coffee.

Uh oh. He knows you went out with Maya. He just asked: How was the sea?

You hit a wall. You know exactly how to talk about today. But how do you tell him about yesterday?

You need a lifeline into the past. Here is your very first taste of it: mbeyre7… ri7t 3a-l-ba7r.

مبارح... رحت عالبحر — Yesterday… I went to the sea · mbeyre7… ri7t 3a-l-ba7r

Let's unpack it. mbeyre7 is yesterday. Listen to the crisp, breathy 7 at the end. mbeyre7.

مبارح... رحت عالبحر — Yesterday… I went to the sea · mbeyre7… ri7t 3a-l-ba7r

Then we have ri7t. I went. It uses the exact same breathy 7 in the middle. ri7t.

مبارح... رحت عالبحر — Yesterday… I went to the sea · mbeyre7… ri7t 3a-l-ba7r

And 3a-l-ba7r is to the sea. Put it all together. Say: mbeyre7… ri7t 3a-l-ba7r.

مبارح... رحت عالبحر — Yesterday… I went to the sea · mbeyre7… ri7t 3a-l-ba7r

Once more, nice and relaxed. mbeyre7… ri7t 3a-l-ba7r.

مبارح... رحت عالبحر — Yesterday… I went to the sea · mbeyre7… ri7t 3a-l-ba7r

Oh dear. It worked too well. He is thrilled. He wants to know what you ate, who was there, what the weather was like...

You definitely do not know how to tell a whole story yet. We need a polite way to hit pause until Level Two.

Here is the ultimate cliffhanger phrase: bukra b7ikilak shu sar.

بكرا بحكيلك شو صار — Tomorrow I'll tell you what happened · bukra b7ikilak shu sar

bukra is tomorrow, as you already know. b7ikilak is I will tell you. Listen to the soft 7 and the k at the end. b7ikilak.

بكرا بحكيلك شو صار — Tomorrow I'll tell you what happened · bukra b7ikilak shu sar

And shu sar means what happened. The s is a heavy S. sar. Let's try the whole phrase.

بكرا بحكيلك شو صار — Tomorrow I'll tell you what happened · bukra b7ikilak shu sar

Say it with me, buying yourself some time: bukra b7ikilak shu sar.

بكرا بحكيلك شو صار — Tomorrow I'll tell you what happened · bukra b7ikilak shu sar

Once more, nice and mysterious. bukra b7ikilak shu sar.

بكرا بحكيلك شو صار — Tomorrow I'll tell you what happened · bukra b7ikilak shu sar

And just like that, you've survived. You live here now. You belong in this present. But the past... that is a whole new adventure.

Let's lock in your first glimpse of the past and future. First: mbeyre7… ri7t 3a-l-ba7r ... mbeyre7… ri7t 3a-l-ba7r ... Yesterday... I went to the sea. And your perfect excuse: bukra b7ikilak shu sar ... bukra b7ikilak shu sar ... Tomorrow I'll tell you what happened.

That is the end of Level One! You have a whole new language waiting for you. Join us every Tuesday and Friday. See you in Level Two!