LANGUAGES OF THE BORDERLANDS
Walking. A group of strangers from many Alpine countries. Curiosity is in the air, also the quiet tension of beginnings. Forests, meadows. Peace. Step by step, forward. Along the way, numerous stones that man has carved to give them meaning: a border. The languages on the signs along the way change, but the meaning of the written words remains similar. Somewhere there are inscriptions in German, elsewhere in Italian, and in between there are words that mean nothing in either of these two languages. But they indicate the presence of another language: Slovenian. In retrospect, the fact that three major language groups meet in this area—Slavic, Germanic, and Romance—inspires me, and I wonder how many other (similar) places there are where languages intertwine in this way. For me, this is a treasure.
When talking to an innkeeper and a shepherd, they both tell me: "Here, each of us knows a little bit of Slovenian." There is a kind of sparkle and satisfaction in their eyes that they have the opportunity to show this part of themselves. It was nice to hear the dialect of this area. It is not "standard" Slovenian, but the language of this very specific area, a living heritage. This makes me wonder: how many people could re-establish or reawaken this skill if people who speak this language were to visit this area more often – and not immediately abandon it because it is easier and because we Slovenians often adapt very quickly to larger, "stronger" languages that are so close to us because of our small size and global demands. Fact: just as in nature, where biodiversity is a sign of resilience, diversity in culture is also a source of strength, not weakness.
If walking for hours was a necessity for our ancestors – a means of survival –, today it is a pleasure for many of us who live in a privileged world. The same goes for moving slowly, without rushing, with our senses open to nature and a willingness to meet others. In a world of neoliberal capitalism that takes away our time – for humanness and coexistence – such walking is becoming a valuable form of resistance.
A conversation with a farmer who is striving to preserve one of the "forgotten" villages gives me hope. Hope that more people like him will be found. That awareness will spread, like a snowball, that different ways of life are possible. Perhaps even healthier ones, as they are more connected to the rhythms of nature and fellow human beings.
I hope that future generations will be able to create different, new concepts and systems that are not based on domination, but on respect for diversity, cooperation, and peaceful coexistence. Of course, this first requires an awakened consciousness and an understanding of the fact that the greatest and most deeply rooted boundaries are in our own minds.
JEZIKI OBMEJNIH OBMOčIJ
Hoja. Skupina neznancev z vseh vetrov. V zraku je radovednost, tiha napetost začetkov. Gozdovi, travniki. Mir. Korak za korakom, naprej. Dan za dnem. Med potjo številni kamni, ki jim je človek s klesanjem pridal pomen: meja. Na tablah ob poti se jeziki izmenjujejo, toda pomen napisanih besed ostaja podoben. Nekje so napisi v nemščini, drugje v italijanščini, vmes se prikradejo še besede, ki v nobenem od teh dveh jezikov ne pomenijo nič. A nakazujejo prisotnost še enega jezika: slovenščine. Retrospektivno me dejstvo, da se na območju srečujejo tri velike jezikovne skupine: slovanska, germanska in romanska, navdušuje in sprašujem se, koliko je še takšnih (podobnih) krajev, kjer se jeziki tako prepletajo? Zame je to bogastvo.
Ob pogovoru z gostilničarjem in pastirjem mi oba s povesta: "ampak tukaj vsak od nas zna malo slovensko." V njunih očeh nekakšna iskra in zadovoljstvo, da imata priložnost pokazati tudi ta del sebe. Lepo je bilo slišati dialekt tega prostora. To ni "standardna" slovenščina, ampak jezik tega točno določenega prostora, živa dediščina. Ob tem me preplavi misel: kolikim bi se ta veščina lahko znova utrdila ali prebudila, če bi se na tem območju večkrat znašli ljudje, ki ta jezik govorijo – in ga ne bi takoj opustili, ker je tako lažje in ker se pogosto zelo hitro prilagodimo večjim, "močnejšim" jezikom, ki so nam zaradi naše majhnosti in globalnih zahtev tako blizu. Dejstvo: tako kot v naravi, kjer je biotska pestrost znak odpornosti, je tudi v kulturi raznolikost vir moči, ne šibkosti.
Če je bila večurna hoja za naše prednike nuja – sredstvo preživetja – je danes za mnoge, ki živimo v priviligiranem svetu, prej redkost. Tako kot počasno premikanje, brez hitenja, z odprtimi čuti do narave in pripravljenostjo za srečevanja. V svetuneoliberalnega kapitalizema, ki nam jemlje čas – za človeškost in sobivanje, postaja takšna hoja dragocena oblika upora.
Pogovor s kmetom, ki si prizadeva ohraniti eno izmed "pozabljenih" vasi, mi daje upanje. Upanje, da se bo našlo še več takih ljudi. Da se bo – kot snežna kepa – širilo zavedanje, da so drugačni načini življenja mogoči. Morda tudi bolj zdravi, saj so bolj povezani z ritmi narave in soljudmi.
Želim si, da bi prihodnje generacije zmogle ustvariti drugačne, nove koncepte ter sisteme, ki ne gradijo na nadvladi, ampak na spoštovanju raznolikost, sodelovanju in mirnem sobivanju. Seveda je za to najprej potrebna zbujena zavest ter razumevanje dejstva, da so največje in najbolj zakoreninjene meje prav v naših glavah.
LANGUAGES OF THE BORDERLANDS
Walking. A group of strangers from many Alpine countries. Curiosity is in the air, also the quiet tension of beginnings. Forests, meadows. Peace. Step by step, forward. Along the way, numerous stones that man has carved to give them meaning: a border. The languages on the signs along the way change, but the meaning of the written words remains similar. Somewhere there are inscriptions in German, elsewhere in Italian, and in between there are words that mean nothing in either of these two languages. But they indicate the presence of another language: Slovenian. In retrospect, the fact that three major language groups meet in this area—Slavic, Germanic, and Romance—inspires me, and I wonder how many other (similar) places there are where languages intertwine in this way. For me, this is a treasure.
When talking to an innkeeper and a shepherd, they both tell me: "Here, each of us knows a little bit of Slovenian." There is a kind of sparkle and satisfaction in their eyes that they have the opportunity to show this part of themselves. It was nice to hear the dialect of this area. It is not "standard" Slovenian, but the language of this very specific area, a living heritage. This makes me wonder: how many people could re-establish or reawaken this skill if people who speak this language were to visit this area more often – and not immediately abandon it because it is easier and because we Slovenians often adapt very quickly to larger, "stronger" languages that are so close to us because of our small size and global demands. Fact: just as in nature, where biodiversity is a sign of resilience, diversity in culture is also a source of strength, not weakness.
If walking for hours was a necessity for our ancestors – a means of survival –, today it is a pleasure for many of us who live in a privileged world. The same goes for moving slowly, without rushing, with our senses open to nature and a willingness to meet others. In a world of neoliberal capitalism that takes away our time – for humanness and coexistence – such walking is becoming a valuable form of resistance.
A conversation with a farmer who is striving to preserve one of the "forgotten" villages gives me hope. Hope that more people like him will be found. That awareness will spread, like a snowball, that different ways of life are possible. Perhaps even healthier ones, as they are more connected to the rhythms of nature and fellow human beings.
I hope that future generations will be able to create different, new concepts and systems that are not based on domination, but on respect for diversity, cooperation, and peaceful coexistence. Of course, this first requires an awakened consciousness and an understanding of the fact that the greatest and most deeply rooted boundaries are in our own minds.
JEZIKI OBMEJNIH OBMOčIJ
Hoja. Skupina neznancev z vseh vetrov. V zraku je radovednost, tiha napetost začetkov. Gozdovi, travniki. Mir. Korak za korakom, naprej. Dan za dnem. Med potjo številni kamni, ki jim je človek s klesanjem pridal pomen: meja. Na tablah ob poti se jeziki izmenjujejo, toda pomen napisanih besed ostaja podoben. Nekje so napisi v nemščini, drugje v italijanščini, vmes se prikradejo še besede, ki v nobenem od teh dveh jezikov ne pomenijo nič. A nakazujejo prisotnost še enega jezika: slovenščine. Retrospektivno me dejstvo, da se na območju srečujejo tri velike jezikovne skupine: slovanska, germanska in romanska, navdušuje in sprašujem se, koliko je še takšnih (podobnih) krajev, kjer se jeziki tako prepletajo? Zame je to bogastvo.
Ob pogovoru z gostilničarjem in pastirjem mi oba s povesta: "ampak tukaj vsak od nas zna malo slovensko." V njunih očeh nekakšna iskra in zadovoljstvo, da imata priložnost pokazati tudi ta del sebe. Lepo je bilo slišati dialekt tega prostora. To ni "standardna" slovenščina, ampak jezik tega točno določenega prostora, živa dediščina. Ob tem me preplavi misel: kolikim bi se ta veščina lahko znova utrdila ali prebudila, če bi se na tem območju večkrat znašli ljudje, ki ta jezik govorijo – in ga ne bi takoj opustili, ker je tako lažje in ker se pogosto zelo hitro prilagodimo večjim, "močnejšim" jezikom, ki so nam zaradi naše majhnosti in globalnih zahtev tako blizu. Dejstvo: tako kot v naravi, kjer je biotska pestrost znak odpornosti, je tudi v kulturi raznolikost vir moči, ne šibkosti.
Če je bila večurna hoja za naše prednike nuja – sredstvo preživetja – je danes za mnoge, ki živimo v priviligiranem svetu, prej redkost. Tako kot počasno premikanje, brez hitenja, z odprtimi čuti do narave in pripravljenostjo za srečevanja. V svetuneoliberalnega kapitalizema, ki nam jemlje čas – za človeškost in sobivanje, postaja takšna hoja dragocena oblika upora.
Pogovor s kmetom, ki si prizadeva ohraniti eno izmed "pozabljenih" vasi, mi daje upanje. Upanje, da se bo našlo še več takih ljudi. Da se bo – kot snežna kepa – širilo zavedanje, da so drugačni načini življenja mogoči. Morda tudi bolj zdravi, saj so bolj povezani z ritmi narave in soljudmi.
Želim si, da bi prihodnje generacije zmogle ustvariti drugačne, nove koncepte ter sisteme, ki ne gradijo na nadvladi, ampak na spoštovanju raznolikost, sodelovanju in mirnem sobivanju. Seveda je za to najprej potrebna zbujena zavest ter razumevanje dejstva, da so največje in najbolj zakoreninjene meje prav v naših glavah.