Here is link to a New York Times video story about a man who was one of the lost boys of Sudan. After living in America, he returned home after 22 years.
My computer is not opening the video. I’ll try to watch it later, but even before I do, I have to ask… after 22 years away, is this guy really returning home? Or is home the place where he’s lived for the majority of his life? I would bet that in such a long time one forgets what his birthplace was like, and starts calling home the place he knows best. I’ve been away from home for four years, and already my memories of it seem blurred and distant. I’m not sure I would be fit to go back there, so I imagine what would happen if I waited another 18 years.
I understand what you are saying Fernanda. I think that I would forget everyday life and experiences as well. But the autrocities these men faced as young children were monumental in there lives. I would imagine that these memories (without closure) would either fall into the category of repressed memories or ones that stay on the surface forever.
My computer is not opening the video. I’ll try to watch it later, but even before I do, I have to ask… after 22 years away, is this guy really returning home? Or is home the place where he’s lived for the majority of his life? I would bet that in such a long time one forgets what his birthplace was like, and starts calling home the place he knows best. I’ve been away from home for four years, and already my memories of it seem blurred and distant. I’m not sure I would be fit to go back there, so I imagine what would happen if I waited another 18 years.
ReplyDeleteI understand what you are saying Fernanda. I think that I would forget everyday life and experiences as well. But the autrocities these men faced as young children were monumental in there lives. I would imagine that these memories (without closure) would either fall into the category of repressed memories or ones that stay on the surface forever.
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