| Several years ago we were negotiating to purchase a small French company with decorative products which could be sold in the United States. Since the negotiations were in French and our French is sparse and "iffy" at best, we hired a professional interpreter, an American ex serviceman living in Paris. He was quite excellent at his job.
During the course of the thing our shipper at the time, who was most creative, whimsical character and who spoke no English, asked our interpreter in French,
"what is a 'whimsey'? What does the word 'whimsey' mean?"
"Well," our friend said. "There is really no direct translation into French. There is really no French word for 'whimsey'."
Our shipper seemed outraged.
"The French have a word for everything! French was the diplomatic language for hundreds of years. You can say anything precisely in French. What do you mean,
'there is no French word for it?"
"There really isn't," our interpreter said. "It is really a little more bewildering." He added. Turning to our shipper he said, "you have whimsey. You are very whimsical!France has whimsey. It was probably one of the 'inventors' of whimsey. But there is really not a French word for it."
Whimsey is in the eye of the beholder and in the mind of the receiver. We all know when we sense it is present. Even the French know when they see it. They just don't know what to call it.
The Whimsey Shoppe for twenty years has enjoyed pursuing Whimseys in France for our customers. The selection and presentation of whimsey has been a delightful passage. It is, therefore, a constantly changing scene at The Whimsey Shoppes.
Scroll through a few of the whimseys shown here at the right. There are vastly more in our two locations. Come visit. |
