A “Slapping the Forehead” Moment

Today, when I was teaching “Let It Be” to my high schoolers, I asked a teacher to translate the phrase “let it be” into Japanese. He then said the phrase in katakana English and waited for me to proceed with the lesson. I looked at him in bewilderment and said “No, in Japanese please”, to which he replied “hakuna matata!”. I lost the struggle to maintain composure, unsuccessfully trying to contain frustruated laughter as I asked him again. He answered “se la vie”. Smack! Not that I was being melodramatic, it was a parasympathetic response that caused my hand to slap my forehead with such force. And that’s pretty much how that lesson went for that particular class.