(None of the people in the photos were quoted – or hurt – during this blog entry)
Perhaps it’s inevitable when people are starting to learn Cantonese that they will feel themselves transported back to their school days.
“I’ve been bad!” they say, and “a big boy/dog/parakeet took my homework!” “I’m too thick” “I can never learn it” and “I’m crap at languages”.
I’ve even seen people slapping themselves for being “stupid” and talking to themselves, saying “X, you idiot!”
I can hear through their mouths the voices of parents and teachers of yesteryear, thinking they’re helping a child’s development by making her feel stupid.
Dear adult learner: You’re an adult now. You’re independent, you take care of yourself, you’re good at your job and you’ve made it to the other side of the world. The horrors of school are far behind you. You are not a pupil. You are a customer paying a consultant to solve a problem for you.
It’s time to stop the voices in your head and replace them with some new ones. “This is easy.” “I’m learning fast.” “I’m good at languages, especially Cantonese.”
Guess what, the brain will believe anything you tell it, positive or negative. Why waste brain power telling yourself you’re stupid when it’s just as easy to tell yourself you’re smart and a quick learner?
Whatever you tell your brain becomes your reality.
Don’t beat yourself up! It’s a waste of time. Instead, congratulate yourself on having achieved so much. List your achievements. Only a few weeks/ months ago you didn’t know a single word of Cantonese but look at you now!
It takes a while, but the brain can be reprogrammed to think differently.
And if there is to be any violence it will come from me, thank you very much, and in the shape of light stabbing.
廣東話好容易學 – Gong Dong Wah hou yongyi hok (Cantonese is easy to learn)
我日日都學好多中文 – O yatyat dou hok hou doh jung man （I learn lots of Chinese every day)
我學得好快 – O hok dak hou fai (I learn quickly)
Filming a new episode of Cantonese - The Movie in you know where!
So people are going in search of ice on which to seriously hurt themselves and icicles to photograph in astonishment.
Yes it was 3C this morning. Not boiling, I’ll admit. But imagine going out this morning and jumping into a river? A very black, dense, menacing-looking river?
This was one of my favourite days in my 28 year-long career of travelling in the mainland. Thank you, P. Thank you. And NOT thank you, static electricity that occurred because of the damned cold, the thermal underwear and the carpet in the hotel room, leading P and I to simultaneously drop the film camera when I handed it to him to take a look at the film footage of himself diving into said river.
今日凍啲 – Gam yat dong di (today is colder)
今日凍少少 – Gam yat dong siu siu (Today is a little colder)
今日凍好多 – Gam yat dong hou doh (Today is a lot colder)
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