As a young man
My Dad was a Merchant Sailor
So he walked with a 'rolling-gait'.
In his middle years,
On Thursdays (Pay Day)
My Brother, who was younger, and I, would wait..
In great anticipation because
That night, Dad's pockets had treats
We'd sit upon the windowsill
Or on our garden gate
Or in the windowsill to watch
Until we'd see, the tall man with curls tousled in the breeze
(st)rolling around the corner at the top of the street
With glee... we'd leap from our seats
Running to our Dad who'd stop at the sight
Of us dashing, as fast as our little legs could
He'd lean down, arms outstretched and with such a grin
Catch us and twirl us around again and again
As we'd squeal with glee
We'd seek hidden treasures...
And find small paper cone twists filled with pleasures!
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I recall,
When I was small
Sitting at my Dad's feet
Looking up with wonder at all
The stories he told of fish that leap
Of Dolphins dancing upon water
And as he told his tales
In his face I could trace
The rippling light cast by shimmering, sparkling unpredictable seas
The ship's deck that he remembered
And as he talked of the salt laden breeze
Which (so it seemed) teased through his dark curls as I watched
Shimmering hues of watery blues
That took My Dad too
Where tea-sets of china caused smashing arrays
So many places of Far far away
*Hands Up* , "I admit it, I'm not a great poet, but these words above represent a great deal of the feelings I have along with the memories of my childhood and one of my greatest Hero's.
Much of who we are is what we learn through our parents. We could appear to inherit these, when you look at a new born child for example, they often exhibit prominent features that they've obviously got as a result of this being a physical aspect of one of their parents.
Both my parents had dark brown (almost black) naturally curly hair, like myself. Having sketched, studied and painted their faces, I can honestly say I recognise most of their features as one of my own.
I inherited the shape of my Mum's nose, but the length and proportion of my Dad's, though obviously narrower. I also inherited my Mum's teeth but my Dad's jawline - hence the refined cheek line, the dimples, the single chin and charming smile (like my Dad's) and the evident enjoyment in that (both parents).
Though I didn't hear my Dad laugh as much as I'd have liked, I think I inherited my belly laugh from him. The sound of my laughter has always been one of my most attractive features.
I was born during the baby boom, or it's immediate aftermath.
Listening to stories of their childhood, it seemed a lot had changed since they'd been little and I have wondered if that's the experience of every single generation we've ever had.
Certainly, as far as history permits me to research, it seems that the changes that my generation have grown through have been exponential by comparison to all our ancestors. Still, I might be completely wrong about that, I am only able to judge by my personal observations afterall, this means that I must make an allowance for personal bias and ignorance to be influencing (to some extent) my conclusions.
What does that mean in practice?
There's more than one concious state in play and action.
There are reasons we have cliches - they're unconcious reminders we create for ourselves.
Ask yourself, "Which ones do I repeat the most?" see if you're interested in the answer and to what extent that information informs you about yourself from a subliminal perspective and open honest (radical I know but absolutely necessary) multidisciplinarian perspective.
Not sure what I mean?
Okay....
Another example:
Sunday Mass
As a child of the 60s, I grew up in a community that was Catholic by title. All the surrounding streets were filled with people who attended the same parish church as myself and my family, school'friends', etc. Protestants lived a little bit outside, on the perimeter to the area where I lived. I'm not exactly sure to what that boundary line (for them) extended. Had I been told I may well have tested it, but it wasn't easy to be confident about the conclusions in this respect when I considered the question as a child.
My Parents, as children, had attended Mass once a week (at least). I grew up knowing it was on Television (Sunday Praise) so.... if I ever had the strange compulsion to watch it, instead of something else, it was available every Sunday evening (BBC 2 - I think).
Mum, as a child - I believe, was used to attending very often, possibly every mass held outside school hours - she didn't state this, but comments made and repeated over years suggest that this is accurate.
Their generation were the first to be able to afford to bring Television into the homes of the increasing majority.
Whereas, as children - my parents went to the Saturday Matinee for their weekly entertainment, the childhood they provided me almost discarded the cinema in favour of the little box in the corner of the living room (previously occupied by an old family favourite - the radio).
When it came to learning about interpersonal relationships, I didn't have to learn by being limited to the people immediately around me as I grew up.
I had Television.
I grew up watching how cinema changed - Black and White movies where families were happily united, fun loving and overcame problems - sometimes with the aid of a family pet (who they could apparently understand).
I grew up making associations with the shape of a window to the reveal on the other side - Play School. I also tried to predict which window by recalling the sequence preceding involved (to see if there was a definite pattern).
Children's television moved on as I grew up. From watching Gemima and the Oval Window, to one of my personal favourites, The Tomorrow People and Grange Hill.
Dr. Who has lasted really well. It's given a lot of people ideas about Time Travel and it's potential (in as far as we've imagined so far, or the scriptwriters, at least, are limited by their imaginations). Their audience were free to consider more.
Philosophical, scientific, intellectual debate, by the masses, has to some extent been a western cultural feature. Sure, it may have only been 6 year olds gathered on a corner in the street discussing the relative advantages of lazer beam guns and the limitations of the game that may have ensued,
"If we're in the 21st century, we CAN fly so I'm allowed to use a personal booster rocket that's attached to my back (backpack) and escape!"
"Er.... okay, but that means I have one too, in fact, no... I have a flying car (like the rockets in the Fun Fair) and it's much faster than your personal booster rocket so I'll be able to catch up and shoot at you with my lazer gun".
"No, you're not allowed to use lazer guns in a flying car, the windows have to be shut because otherwise you'd die."
- speed, rocket powered fuel attributes, velocity, cabin pressure = citations in 'child speak' used at this point to justify the limitation.
See what I mean?
Each child is inventing within known parameters, taking into consideration the associated terminology and complications.
How we've been able to successfully negotiate the limitations in aspects of these childhood games spills over into reality. Play is about practising, right?
It also provided the means to observe and note differences in response. For Example: Dr. Who wasn't that scary, it was interesting to me. I liked what it sometimes proposed though I could see there were disadvantages too.
The most powerful and influential stories, along with their associations (and implications), are formed in childhood.
I grew up reading books published by Ladybird, as one example. I was surprised to discover much later that the stories of Hans Christian Anderson and those of the Brothers Grimm had been read already, though much shorter versions and bolder print.
I was interested in the underlying morals and the intrinsic nature of those.
How these were explained to me and how to apply interpretation to gain a greater appreciation for the story.
How these rules apply and in what variety of scenarios, what key points to watch for (indicators).
Consider all the inherent code of films, for instance.
Good guys wear white and Bad guys wear Black.
Cowboys used to be promoted as the Good Guys, but I am glad that's changed. ?
I always thought the Native Americans were badly treated - for being such Noble and spiritual folk.
American films usually cast the Bad Guy with an English accent. Darth Vader isn't an exception, though the voice is an African American, there are strongly associated terminology indicative of an English speaking person. (also suggested by slight accent).
However far you test Positive and Negative, their presence is always confirmed, eventually.
For (yet another) Example:
I have been approached for a charitable donation.
I have agreed to provide an oil painting of mine and I have the address, packaging and postage all prepared.
I've been agonising over which of my paintings to send, considering this an opportunity to self-promote and make a personal contribution to a worthwhile collection.
(I have very strong thoughts about charitable organisations, having previously worked for the Inland Revenues Charitable Claims Branch).
So, I have very strict criteria to be met before I consider any charitable event to have genuine merit.
The One I'm Involved With Does.
Still, it's been very difficult choosing what painting to send. Obviously I want it to be one of the better paintings, but to be fair to myself, they're all good and I have spent hours looking at them.
Some paintings have taken me months to complete.
Some have taken a few hours.
While there is such a big difference in the time taken to complete each painting varies so hugely, I do not think there's less merit in either as a result.
If anything, those paintings that took a couple of hours to finish, actually were planned for years in advance. I just let myself free with the brushes and paint and loved the results to the point where... I was amazed with how great it was so soon.
Or, to put it another way, "Some things are just easier to say than others".
Or, "Prepared"
When we speak, most of the time we don't think about it. We just say what we're thinking immediately. Sometimes we spend time thinking as we form a comment of any kind. Sometimes we repeat ourselves (we all do). We don't think about those occasions after the first couple of times, we just automatically use them when the associations are made by context/situation.
Know what I mean?
See?
