Mexico!
Hola!
I’ve recently returned from a week in beautiful Sayulita, Mexico, where I fell in love with pretty much everything, from fresh corn tortillas to the language and accents.
There’s such Warmth in the way people greet each other. It really got me thinking about how our environment and consequently our lifestyles are expressed through the way we speak.
In Sayulita, I was outside almost constantly. I walked everywhere. My pace was slow enough to accommodate meeting someone on the street on my way to anywhere, and that was always the most important thing in that moment.
This openness and presence is reflected in the fact that people passing each other always look each other warmly in the eye and at least say “Hola”, and usually “Buenos dias/tardes/noches!” If you know the person, you stop and greet them with hands, hugs, kisses…
I LOVE THIS. It’s how I love to be. Bikini and a smile. Nothing to hide. No reason to rush; you’ll get there in time.
I live in a Cold environment by comparison. Not arctic, by any means, but I’m currently wearing a long-sleeve shirt, sweater, wool jacket, pants with leggings under them, wool socks under slipper boots, with my feet on a hot water bottle and a steaming thermos of tea by my side.
It’s cold out there, so I keep myself protected. Indoors. And when I’m outside, and every molecule of air is sucking at my body’s heat, a large part of me does not want to stop until I get back inside.
Temperature is only part of it. The Colors and sounds and sensory experience of Sayulita inspires an open, softly sensual sound.
The consonants of Mexican Spanish are soft, the melody gently flowing like a stream, with a good deal of variance in its music, and the energy behind it is warm and (to me) curious. I love this curiosity. It’s part of the charm of Mexicans I’ve encountered.
Americans can view that with skepticism, but to me, you’re met with what you give. If you withhold yourself from your encounters with people, you won’t get much:
“How are you?”
“Good! You?”
“Good!”
“Good!”
...and we walk away having learned nothing, revealed nothing, gained nothing. But protected ourselves from a perceived energy loss -just like we bundle up from the cold.
What are your thoughts on the subject?
Vibes and openness,
Amy
My Real Accent
I am Delightfully Baffled
by people who still ask
“What is your Real accent?”
On a base level,
Google me. Wiki me.
I’m not hiding the fact that
I was born in Seattle.
Which is entirely beside the point.
Why do we think that people have an
Inherent, homeostatic State Of Being?
We don’t pretend a maple tree
is Only a maple tree
while its leaves are Red.
That’s only One Stage
-a few weeks a year-
for a tree that was once
a seed
a sapling
all the while a growing, changing,
morphing entity.
Sometimes it has buds.
Then slowly, green leaves emerge,
which even then
change
yellow red brown
crumple die fall,
and the barren tree is
still
a maple.
How did you sound when you were
five?
twelve?
trying to be “Cool” in high school?
When we talk to a newborn,
our voice becomes
Ridiculous.
“And who’s a big boy?!
Are YOU a big boy?!
YesYouAre! Oh YesYouARE!”
Are you still being
You?
Yes.
But you wouldn’t use that voice
when you talk to your
Boss
or your Grandmother,
or that hot chick at the bar.
We humans are
Constantly
Changing.
I understand that this is Difficult
to shove into One Box.
Give One label to.
It’s confusing.
We Change
depending on where we are
whom we’re with
what we want…
The honest answer to the question of
Reality
is the one I’ve been giving all along:
They’re ALL Real.
They’re all “Me”,
(unless I’m playing a Character,
in which case, it’s the Character.)
I’m actually Like That.
I talk to myself in whatever voice
lends the most applicable
perspective
to the topic at hand.
It’s Super Helpful.
Try it!
So when I decide
Not to Edit Myself;
when I decide to be
REAL,
you get a smattering of voices/accents,
according to my mood and thoughts.
When I do interviews,
I’m usually able to stop myself
from switching accents,
because I’m aware that people expect
One.
This can be Boring to me
and often challenging,
especially if the interviewer has a
Fabulous Accent.
But watch any of my interviews
if you want the accent
that represents
where I’m From.
It’s not the accent that usually pops out
when I’m alone,
but if you need to assign
One
to me,
and you want it to be
Where I’m From,
go for it.
The Real Me
is incapable of being
confined
to
ONE
BOX.
My identity is very
Flexible.
I know that when I talk to a newborn
in Baby Voice,
I’m still me.
When I say, “Goodness!”
to my Grandma,
it’s because “Sh*t!” would not have the desired effect.
It’s just Me
Communicating
in a way she’ll understand.
When I go to France
and speak French,
I don’t Forget “Who I Am”,
I convey
who I am
in a way that makes sense
in France.
We all have
many
many
many
voices
or “accents”
that we use in different circumstances.
Perhaps you aren’t aware of it,
but you do too.
I’ll wager there’s a
Critical Voice
in your head
that sounds like your
Father or Mother
or a formative Teacher.
And if you criticize yourself
out loud,
you may sound a lot like them.
Is that your
REAL accent?!
Yes.
In that moment.
It’s a part of you.
We can never show ALL
the parts of our
kaleidoscopic selves
at once,
nor Cram them into
one voice
or one Representative Outfit.
…For some reason,
I think people don’t believe a thing is
REAL
unless it’s ugly
or fearsome.
“The News”
as we call it,
is Not The Only Truth.
It’s usually the truth that creates
the most FEAR in the reader.
We think that people are only
“Being Honest”,
when they say all of the
Ugly, Fearsome, Mean Stuff
that crosses their mind.
But kindness is also true.
Beauty is also true.
Love is Real.
All the parts of me
and all the parts of
You
are REAL.
Amy Walker LIVE on Friday!
Ladies and Gentleman, Boys and Girls of all ages! Coming to a computer screen near you
Tune in for a Live Interactive Vlog Experience with Amy Walker -uniquely fun, entertaining, and inspiring! Each week, Amy will perform a new Something (song, writing, comedy, monologue, etc.) and open it up for discussion with You. Then a Q&Amy, a sing-along, and whatever she’s inspired to add. See why Amy has captured the hearts of millions of viewers in over 165 countries on all 7 continents…
WHEN: Fridays at 3:00 PST/6:00 EST/CLICK for Your Timezone
WHERE: AmyWalkerLIVE.com
Do YOU have a question that you’d like Amy to see and possibly answer during one of her Friday LIVE shows? Here’s your chance! Submit your questions to LIVE@AmyWalkerOnline.com and tune in Fridays to see if your question gets chosen!
Standard American Accent Tutorial!
Hey everyone!
Since so many people have asked about learning a Standard American accent, I’ve been working really hard to create an in-depth training program for you.
I’d planned to have it available for cheap rental (we all gotta eat!), but we just found out that Google only rents to US, UK, and Canada. Since I’m not about to deny most of the world access to something that could help people, we’re making the entire thing FREE for All.
You can find the introduction and part one here; the rest you can find here!
Because I love you, believe in you and I wish you every joy and success in your life and work.
Vibes to you,
Amy
Full TEDx Talk videos
Hi Friends!
Here’s part 3 of my TEDx Talk, which is about my personal journey.
I’ll put parts 1 and 2 here as well, so you don’t have to visit old posts.
The Talk:
Expanding Your Identity to Embody Your Potential.
is about Expanding Who We Think We Are to include Who We Want to Be, so we can Embody Our Potential.
…10 points for anyone who can count how many accents I use!
May they bring you Joy, Inspiration, and Fulfillment!
Vibes to you, and all you Are,
Amy
Part 1:
Part 2:
