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Friday, October 08, 2010
What Affects Your Life Today That Happened Yesterday?
Are there events that happened to us as small children that get buried in our subconscious that can then resurface later?
Recently, I have been so driven to learn the Swiss-German language that sometimes I wonder if my body has been taken over by aliens reincarnated from Heidi. At every opportunity, I listen to conversations in the language in hopes of picking up a new term, joke, or phrase. I ask all my Swiss friends to correct me when I try to speak, and I have a tutor that I meet with twice a week. Then, sometimes it gets embarrassing when I start practicing with anyone who will listen. The gas station attendent was very pleased last week when I laughed loudly at all his silly jokes, and we would have continued the banter all night, if it wasn't for the impatient person waiting in line behind me.
It was at this point, that I started to look closer at why I am so driven to learn this language. Why do I feel passionate about this new topic, and where is it coming from?
I always knew that from the age of 2 to 6, I was home for a majority of the day alone with my Swiss grandmother in the U.S., where I grew up. From what my Dad has told me, she would always speak English when my parents were around, since it was the common language, but from this deep desire to learn the language, I have a theory that perhaps she must have spoken to me directly in her mother tongue when it was just the two of us. Not only that, but when she started to develop Alzheimer's when I was 4, her language of preference became Swiss-German, and there must have been something that was, at that point, grounded inside of me forever more.
Last week, I also heard that astrologically, we are all processing emotional issues that we dealt with in 1982-83. Whether you believe in astrology or not, I do find it interesting to look back in our history, and see how those developments affect us today. For me, this is even more influential, since I was 7 and 8 at that time, still a child, and able to absorb everything around me like a sponge. At this point, Grandma was in the more advanced stages of Alzheimer's, and although in a nursing home, we visited her twice a week, where for at least an hour each day, I was hearing, and perhaps needing to respond in this language that I have never fully developed until now.
This being said, we also all process childhood experiences differently. My cousins grew up with my grandmother as well, but no one has been so driven by Swiss-German to pack up their bags and move full-time to Switzerland. In addition, a girlfriend of mine said just yesterday that her "hippie" and liberal parents have inspired her to live a free-style city life, while it has caused her two sisters to marry their first boyfriends and have children at a very young age. We each walk away with our own interpretations.
With these thoughts, I put the question out to you - what childhood experiences have affected how you are driven today, the passions you pursue, or the lifestyle you lead? In addition, is there an event in 1982-83 that may be driving you particularly today, in fall 2010?
With Heidi in my body, and what I believe is more my Grandmother looking over me, I have recently pursued a new project for January 2011 that works completely in Swiss-German. This blog was inspired by how astounded I was at my energy to track down the manager, get my language level high enough to perform, and ace the interview (thanks Grandma ). Come early 2011,when the new project starts, I will face the true test. If my theory is correct though, there is a little girl waiting inside of me, just bursting to break free!
Posted by Ingrid on 10/08 at 09:09 PM
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