Bienvenidos a Uruguay

Week 37--

 

Happy April! April showers bring May flowers! But it's fall here... So... April showers...will soon May-ke me scour(s)? Okay, whatever, at least I tried!

 

If I were to entitle this post in a way other than, "Week 37," I would entitle it: "The Power of Words and Friendship." (The title actually reminds me of that old, Disney Channel movie...aunque tiene nada que ver.) Now I know it may sound cheesy, but it's true! Words carry a certain weight... a certain "power," as with friendship. I feel as I have continually experienced both in my life in general, and more specifically here in South America, and even more specially this week in Uruguay. Allow me to share a few of my thoughts... "Con permiso." (This is where you respond out loud "Adelante.") "Adelante."

 

The summer before my junior year in high school, my English Language teacher assigned "The Book Thief" as summer reading. Let's just say that usually not everyone actually fully completed summer reading (especially when your summer reading book is "The Red Badge of Courage," yuck)... But this particular year, I think everyone happily completed it. The book was (still is) incredible. I would always say, "Even the boys loved it!" As we continued to discuss the book in class as the year began, digging deeper and deeper into its meaning, the book became even more incredible. The power of words. You can influence the change of a nation with words, as Hitler did during the Holocaust. You can influence the change of ideas, behavior, feelings... It's kind of scary: the power of words... but also so fascinating.

 

This week, the power of words has become more evident to me. As a foreign exchange student, dealing with non-foreign students and professors, I have realized how much weight words truly carry. Being an "outsider," in the sense that I am not from here, nor grew up in the same culture, nor learned the language from birth, brings about a sense of vulnerability, and with this vulnerability, comes a degree of sensitivity. Although I am a black belt in karate (...no seriously, I am!), sometimes I'm not so tough when it comes to, here it is again, the power of words. I think we've probably all heard the saying, "Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me." Yeah, IIIIIII'm not so sure about that. I don't know about you, but not too many people throw sticks and stones at me on a daily basis... However, words are everywhere and form such a crucial part of our day to day lives. I think, at times, words have a greater power than those so called "sticks and stones." And if the three are mixed together... Oh boy... watch out.

 

So what am I trying to get at here? I am not trying to say that anyone here has been intentionally hurtful in their words to me. No, not at all! On the contrary, the Uruguayans'/South Americans' words to me are most often filled with kindness, encouragement, and/or hope. But there are times, as there are in the United States and all over the world as well, when a person's words are hurtful, without necessarily an intention to actually be hurtful. This occurs most often, I am guessing, when the speaker has never "been in the listener's shoes." For a purely hypothetical example: imagine a local, who has never gone to live in another country with a different language, speaking to a current foreign exchange student living in the local's country without full knowledge of the language. <--- that's what I mean by the whole "shoes" saying/example. Anways, let me repeat: it is sometimes NOT the intention behind the words, but sometimes just the words themselves, and the way that they are interpreted by the listener, that may sometimes be hurtful. Maybe "bad intentions" could be our "sticks and stones" because if the three are mixed together...oh boy... watch out. Also, something to emphasize: Positive words carry just as much, if not more, weight as negative words. But this is what I'm getting at! This is where the power of words comes in to play! ...It kind of goes back to my point again from week 34 about "one person making a difference for the good or for the bad." The way I say things, the words I choose, and the tone and form in which I use those words, can truly make a difference in some one's day-- for the good or for the bad. That's all I'm trying to say here.

The good news is: I (we) as a listener(s) and interpreter(s) of these words have the power to let them affect me (us) negatively or not! But that would be a whole other blog post for a whole other day. I'll just leave this with you for some food for thought: "The Lord is my light and my salvation--whom shall I fear. The Lord is the stronghold of my life--of whom shall I be afraid? When the wicked advance against me to devour me, it is my enemies and my foe who will stumble and fall. Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear; though war break out against me, even then I will be confident." -- Psalm 28:1-3

 

I take this as a gift: to be in this vulnerable position where I can truly understand the weight my words carry. I hope to be more sensitive to this fact once I return to the U.S. ... back on the "inside" where I feel comfortable. I don't ever want to be so comfortable that I forget this lesson: that my words and the way I use them matter.

 

Words are even more fascinating when you think of them in terms of forming a whole language... a whole way of communication, of conversation. And through language, communication (which, yes, could include nonverbal), and conversation... mixed with quality time, service, and shared experiences...along a large spoonful of vulnerability, love, and trust... We form FRIENDSHIPS! The POWER of friendship! This will be a lot shorter than my lil' tid bit on the power of words, but I would just like to say that I have spent some wonderful time this week talking and spending time with friends, in both English and in Spanish (which is kinda a neat thing), both in person and via Skype (which is also kinda a neat thing). I am just so unbelievably thankful to have people in my life whom I can consider true friends. I think there is a special power in that. So thank you, friends, for being who you are and for being mine. 

I hope all is well with each and every one of you! Howsabout we make this week to come a great week, during which we are both conscious and appreciative of our words and our true friendships. Who's with me?!

 

Hasta la próxima vez--

 

Courtney

 

Mi grupo de amigos de la iglesia en una noche de pizza esta noche... el poder de la amistad!

 

Ps. I included "The Book Thief" link to Amazon in this blog post in case you would like to purchase it to read. Trust me, it's a good one. Here's the link again, in case you missed it before.

 

Pss. Remember to choose your words (and friends too, I suppose) wisely! ;)