"loturik" dauden islands
The Official School of Languages (Pamplona): 25 urte 25 years 25 ans 25 años 25 anni 25 jahren
When we tip-toe into the classroom to learn a foreign langauge for the first time - the nought of our knowledge is as round as the world – we are obliged to look into the mirror again. And those things so familiar to us are renewed with a different energy, a different music. Ni naiz. I am. Je suis. Yo soy. Io sono. Ich bin...
And as we contemplate ourselves, we cast our gaze at our feet and start from the bottom. Oinak. Feet. Pieds. Pies. Piede. FüBe. And then Hankak. Legs. Jambes. Piernas. Gambe. Beine. Until we finally reach the top. Burua. Head. Tête. Cabeza. Testa. Kopf. And so, little by little, this is how we grow.
We might find such variety and contrast rather off-putting, even frightening, making us suffer a “cappogiro” as some would say. But if, with these new feet that have just seen the light of day, we are able to walk along this road full of daunting forks and other difficulties, we will come across some surprising things. Thanks to the books that come into our hands and thanks to the stories and anecdotes those close to us tell, we will soon realise that apparently different languages have so much in common. If we are lucky enough to discover proverbs and sayings we will see that this is so. For all those miserable hypocrites that plague our existence we can dedicate the following to them: “zozoak beleari ipurbelz” which in English tuns out to be “Pot calling kettle black.” Or even this one. “Egia da latz eta garratz.” “The truth hurts” And for those poor creatures who can´t make up their minds, can´t take a step forward, we can offer this advice. “Coger el toro por los cuernos.” “Take the bull by the horns.” If they´re not into bullfighting, then perhaps this one: “Burdina berotan jo behar da” which in English is “strike while the iron´s hot.” And in these modern times with so much machinery and so many wires that help us to learn, there is a little piece of wisfom we shouldn´t forget: “Eroriz, eroriz ikasten da oinez” “You can´t learn without falling.”
But now it´s time to pick up our magic carpet and leave the classroom flying bckwards at breakneck speed. We look round and we catch sight of two islands that appear on the horizon. As we get closer, we notice strange contrasts between the two. One with countless numbers of hills covered in a voluptuous and sedcutive vegetation coloured in shades of green that go beyond the imagination. The other is flat and desertlike. It is covered with sharp rocks that send hipnotising rays to the sky at twilight. We are not sure what to do. The dilemma finally forces us to jump up into the air and suddenly we feel the embrace of the turquoise waters that separate the islands. Then there is a whirl of bubbles and a lot of confusion. But soon everything calms down once again and we begin to go down deeper. On our way, we bump into sad, forgotton words, like the wreckage of galleons waiting for the day when they will be found again. Exotic strangely shaped letters swim in the depths searching for an open mouth. Finally, we touch the sea bed and while we look for more treasures we become aware of something, something so obvious that it brings a smile to our face. The islands are joined together. Let´s celebrate, then, the differences that unite us.
When we tip-toe into the classroom to learn a foreign langauge for the first time - the nought of our knowledge is as round as the world – we are obliged to look into the mirror again. And those things so familiar to us are renewed with a different energy, a different music. Ni naiz. I am. Je suis. Yo soy. Io sono. Ich bin...
And as we contemplate ourselves, we cast our gaze at our feet and start from the bottom. Oinak. Feet. Pieds. Pies. Piede. FüBe. And then Hankak. Legs. Jambes. Piernas. Gambe. Beine. Until we finally reach the top. Burua. Head. Tête. Cabeza. Testa. Kopf. And so, little by little, this is how we grow.
We might find such variety and contrast rather off-putting, even frightening, making us suffer a “cappogiro” as some would say. But if, with these new feet that have just seen the light of day, we are able to walk along this road full of daunting forks and other difficulties, we will come across some surprising things. Thanks to the books that come into our hands and thanks to the stories and anecdotes those close to us tell, we will soon realise that apparently different languages have so much in common. If we are lucky enough to discover proverbs and sayings we will see that this is so. For all those miserable hypocrites that plague our existence we can dedicate the following to them: “zozoak beleari ipurbelz” which in English tuns out to be “Pot calling kettle black.” Or even this one. “Egia da latz eta garratz.” “The truth hurts” And for those poor creatures who can´t make up their minds, can´t take a step forward, we can offer this advice. “Coger el toro por los cuernos.” “Take the bull by the horns.” If they´re not into bullfighting, then perhaps this one: “Burdina berotan jo behar da” which in English is “strike while the iron´s hot.” And in these modern times with so much machinery and so many wires that help us to learn, there is a little piece of wisfom we shouldn´t forget: “Eroriz, eroriz ikasten da oinez” “You can´t learn without falling.”
But now it´s time to pick up our magic carpet and leave the classroom flying bckwards at breakneck speed. We look round and we catch sight of two islands that appear on the horizon. As we get closer, we notice strange contrasts between the two. One with countless numbers of hills covered in a voluptuous and sedcutive vegetation coloured in shades of green that go beyond the imagination. The other is flat and desertlike. It is covered with sharp rocks that send hipnotising rays to the sky at twilight. We are not sure what to do. The dilemma finally forces us to jump up into the air and suddenly we feel the embrace of the turquoise waters that separate the islands. Then there is a whirl of bubbles and a lot of confusion. But soon everything calms down once again and we begin to go down deeper. On our way, we bump into sad, forgotton words, like the wreckage of galleons waiting for the day when they will be found again. Exotic strangely shaped letters swim in the depths searching for an open mouth. Finally, we touch the sea bed and while we look for more treasures we become aware of something, something so obvious that it brings a smile to our face. The islands are joined together. Let´s celebrate, then, the differences that unite us.
