Good Morning Vietnam

Today I voyage to a new part of the world.

I am going on a vacation to Vietnam for two weeks.  I haven't left the country since I studied abroad five years ago; an experience that immediately shaped me into a seemingly new person.  It pruned the old me, and nourished the branches of myself I was most proud of.  I left feeling like I had a guest pass to other cultures.  Even this week, I met someone from Albania and was able to draw on my study abroad experience to connect with them.

I told them that when I was in Strasbourg, I heard the President of Albania speak at the Counself of Europe.  I recalled that his prestige isn't what I was most impressed by; instead it was his taste in rhetoric.  He chose to speak in English, rather than utilizing translators, so his message would be heard by the majority from his own voice.  This added credibility while demonstrating their country's desire to be an equal with the larger English-speaking ones, and the impact they would like to have.

I was able to recite this impression and connect my respect from this to the person I had just met.

Clearly, linguistics fascinate me.  To analyze them is to identify subtext and create a closer to connection to someone.  To care about them is to respect another person and their culture.  And I am terrified to travel to a country where I do not speak the language.  I don't know taboos to avoid, how to be respectful, how to say hello or ask for help.

In two weeks time I definitely will.  I am immersing myself in my fears, my yearnings, my wanderlust and my insatiable desire to learn.

This past week we all looked to the sky and stared in fascination at the sun and the moon.  We wish on stars and dream of inhabiting other planets.  

And yet there are universes in every individual, lightyears lengths of stories, galaxies of experiences we couldn't possibly imagine from the glimpses we've seen in media.  Even the nature possesses new worlds in their different ecosystems.

So as much as we gaze up at the sky with wonder and curiosity, I plan to bring the same awe to each new person I may meet. 

This trip will no doubt feed my love of language and learning other cultures.  I am excited to sprout new intellect and break down ignorance I didn't know I had.  I promise to write of my discoveries, and share the cultural spores that I collect.  We certainly need them to grow in this nation.

 

Social Hibernation

I've spent to weeks in vocal and social semi-silence.  Speaking for my job all day caused me to strain my voice, and never getting a chance to heal caused a blood vessel to rupture on my vocal chords.  For those of you who've known me in my hospital days, you'll understand that the pain was almost lost on me, evolution has demanded I have a high tolerance. Still though, sharp pain is never a good sign and $50 in copay and $20 in medicine later, I had my injury discovered.

I spent the two weeks mostly on my own; being around others provided too infuriating of a difficulty to communicate.  It's without a doubt made me appreciate my ASL-speaking friends tenfold, for their ability to adapt and their patience to be understood by those who don't sign.

It's been a bit of a mental vacation, just before I go on a geographical one.  I return to work for four days and then fly out of the country for a vacation of two weeks.  It's been years since I've had a vacation, and half a decade since I've left the country.

I am thrilled to be taking a break from the racist insanity that consumes our headlines, though I anticipate many questions from those who live elsewhere.    I was studying abroad during the election for Barack Obama's second term, and was amazed by how thoroughly other countries watch our politics.  People who barely spoke English were finding the words to ask who I was supporting and insisting on it being Obama, someone more understanding of our influence on the rest of the world.  So while I'm excited to take a break from our national shame, I anticipate having to defend those feel it, not cause it.

We'll see.  Spending time in a country whose primary language is not English is always humbling.  We take for granted how easy it is for us to be understood, a theme not lost on me in these two weeks of silence.  Needing to adapt, to change something so fundamental in my day to day, it makes me marvel at others.  Polyglots, those with patience, those who are willing to help.

Language many not be universal, but compassion is.  I look forward to finding those who will help me along this upcoming journey, as well as those who  provide more obstacle than safety net; I'll likely learn the most from them.

And thus I return from my summer hibernation, slightly sleepy, somewhat sore, and extremely ready for change.