Panda Bear's Playhouse Presents...
XOBIAR (pronounced ex-oh-by-er)
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"XOBIAR"
is part of the language of the heart of Panda Bear's Playhouse. It stands
for "Kiss, Hug, Bug in a Rug!
Gramma and her mother always made up shorter, sometimes funny, expressions for how they felt or what they did. An armpit tickle was an attack by "The Pit Viper", and a tummy tickle was an attack by the "Naval Destroyer"!
There were never just ordinary hugs in Gramma's house. They were "love sandwiches". When Gramma's mom wrapped her arms around Gramma, Gramma would laugh. As her mom gently squeezed away, Gramma would chant, "Bologna in the middle!" Giggles would multiply as the "bologna" wiggled.
When Gramma's mom tucked her in at night, she would speak in French: Je t'aime! (zher-tem) which means "I love you". Gramma would answer: "shut the door". This was her fun way of answering mom in French: " Je t'adore!" (zher-ta-door) " I adore you!" Gramma would answer, Ok, I can do that", and she'd close the door behind her as she warmly smiled and whispered, "XOBIAR".
Don't
think for a minute that Gramma drank ordinary hot
chocolate. Oh no, her mom would
fix her a "cup of cuddles": "warmth and love" in one cup, as
Great Gramma would explain it. Gramma fixes this for Ping Pong and his friends, too!
When Gramma's mom saw or felt that something was lovely and wonderful she'd exclaim," TOBJIF". If it's a Thing Of Beauty-the Joy Is Forever was what she was saying. (This was her way of shortening the Keats poem that says: a thing of beauty is a joy forever.)
Gramma Panda still speaks a lot of the language that she and her mother invented. "Your words should decorate your soul'" Gramma remembered her mom saying. Nothing was ordinary in life according to Great Gramma, and Great Gramma would express it so colorfully in her language of love. Gramma would tell Ping Pong that it was the language of fun too!
