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fluentbyear
🇪🇸 Spanish · Fluency Level 3

PART 3 · LESSON 22 OF 30 · 30 MINUTES

Don't Get Sentimental

It's Sarah's last night shift as a nurse on the maternity ward. Remedios pretends not to care, and has brought a cake, for the ward, she says, with Sarah's name on it. At three in the morning, she asks Sarah how she calms a frightened mother, and at the eight o'clock handover, the supervisor catches her out. Refuse to be sentimental - don't get sentimental, you're only going to another floor, it's for the ward, not for you - ask how someone does it - how do you get them to calm down, it's not for me - calm a frightened mother, in plain words - I sit down beside her and look her in the eye, I explain what's happening, and we breathe together, slowly - and say goodbye with a straight face - you'll be missed, well, a little bit, me? it must be lack of sleep.

Audio instruction: English

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THE STORY

It's the night of Wednesday, May 22nd, 2030, three in the morning, on the maternity ward. It's Sarah's last night shift as a nurse. On Monday, she starts as a midwife, on the delivery ward of the same hospital. She has just come out of room nine, where a first-time mother was crying, frightened, with her baby in her arms. At the nurses' station, Remedios, twenty years on the ward and not one to show her feelings, has a box from a cake shop beside her. At eight o'clock, at the handover, the supervisor sees what's inside. This is the conversation you'll be able to say by the end of the lesson.

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Words and phrases

The lesson is for your ears. Open this afterwards, to see what you learned.
la plantalah PLAHN-tahthe ward, the floor
No te pongas sentimental.noh teh POHN-gahs sehn-tee-mehn-TAHLDon't get sentimental.
Que te vas a otra planta.keh teh BAHS ah OH-trah PLAHN-tahYou're only going to another floor.
una tartaOO-nah TAHR-taha cake
Es para la planta, no para ti.ehs PAH-rah lah PLAHN-tah noh PAH-rah TEEIt's for the ward, not for you.
¿Y por qué pone mi nombre?ee pohr KEH POH-neh mee NOHM-brehThen why has it got my name on it?
se calmenseh KAHL-mehnthey calm down
¿Tú cómo haces para que se calmen?TOO KOH-moh AH-sehs PAH-rah keh seh KAHL-mehnHow do you get them to calm down?
explicárseloehks-plee-KAHR-seh-lohto explain it to her
No es para mí. Es para explicárselo a la nueva.noh ehs PAH-rah MEE ehs PAH-rah ehks-plee-KAHR-seh-loh ah lah NWEH-bahIt's not for me. It's so I can explain it to the new girl.

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