Sapo verde, Sasha!

Here in México we have a special "song" we use for our very loved friends and relatives in their birthdays.

You cannot use it for strangers or for distant relatives.

The use of the song implies a very special and close friendship.

Beside the traditional "Mañanitas" (a song used to congratulate in birthdays), we sing that special song to close friends.

It's a very joyous, childish song. It is based on the traditional "Happy birthday to you", but only phonetically speaking. Someone who does not speak english tried to sang that phrase and used words in spanish that "sounded like" the original song.

So it came to be "Sapo verde eres tu" (kinda rhymes with "happy birthday to you"). It really is meaningless in both languages. But it was "catchy" and childish enough to endure. It is now known as "Sapo verde".

So from México with love: Sapo verde eres tu, Sasha!


(photos from my friends at work, and from my wife Liz and one of my daughters Ianna)