what is it about the sound of voices?

"Since Fr. Ubald doesn't speak very audible English, he will be speaking in French with a translator to translate his words into English."

"Oh no," I groaned internally. If there was one thing I was hoping sitting there at St. Tom's that Wednesday evening, it was was that Father Ubald wouldn't have an accent. This translator situation seemed even worse! "It would be better if he had an accent, get me out of here sooner." I thought to myself, "How much time is this going to add onto his talk?" Yes, I wanted to listen to this Rwandan priest's talk, but only if it was audible and entertaining. Heaven forbid that I may be inconvenienced by the telling of this man's experience of genocide, the slaughter of his family, and the healing ministry he has encouraged!

But... as Fr. Ubald began to speak, previous annoyances seemed to melt away. His body-language and face told of emotion that could not be shown through words alone. The nature and tone of how he talked, his mannerisms and emotions spoke more than any words he said through that translator. His French words left a story unheard, but his emotions relayed the unimaginable despair felt by those involved in the genocide and the beautiful healing that had gone on not only in the hearts of the victims' families, but in the killers themselves.

I guess my point is that what I thought was going to be a huge inconvenience ended up quite the opposite. Funny how that happens.