^{There’s a lot that’s been written about space and communication and we know that different cultures measure the bubble of space between themselves and the person they are speaking to differently.But there is another sort of space that exists when people interact. Rather than physical space this is more abstract, a kind of private space. In most cultures this concept of space has well defined borders, unfortunately invisible to the culturally naïve. Books and articles on cross cultural communication discuss why it’s important to be aware of these cultural differences if we hope to avoid giving offence.The difficulty for Hebrew speakers speaking English is that this concept of space in Hebrew is shared rather than private. So if a Hebrew speaker, however competent in English, simply employs the interactional style of Hebrew when speaking English, s/he runs the risk of causing unintended offence.This must have been the case when an Israeli businessman, very fluent and very confident in English was hosting a dinner for American guests in Tel Aviv. During the small talk that characterizes such events, one of the American women guests was heard to say to him, very bluntly, “You’re invading my space”!} 

^{I wish I’d been there to hear what caused this protest. Perhaps he mentioned something about her appearance, perhaps he asked about the cost of something?  Perhaps he sat too close or perhaps he touched her arm? Who knows? Cross cultural communication is a minefield and we need a different mindset if we want to avoid blow ups.}

^{How mindful are you of this phenomenon when you interact in English?} 

^Lola