Before I went back to work I started holding Astrid up to the photos we have displayed on a bookshelf in our hallway, and would point out Mama, Papa and Astrid.The first week I was working, our nanny told me that Astrid would point to the photos and say "Mama" or "Papa".
Today Astrid and I were looking at photos posted on my blog. She loved seeing photos of herself. She would smile, laugh and kick her feet. Then she saw the photos of Uwe reading to her and she pointed and said, "Papa."
That really touched me because of a few reasons:
1) Uwe has been gone since Wed. night so Astrid hasn't seen him for 2 days. (She must wonder where Uwe is and when he's coming back. I know she must think it's strange that I'm the one bathing her in the evenings, since Uwe is the one who always give her a bath and gets her ready for bedtime.)
2) She pointed out "Papa" before I even told her who was in the photo. So I can't contribute it to just mimicking me. She recognized Uwe from the photo all on her own.
3) My parents had a professional photo taken of me when I was about 1 month old sitting between them. My dad is on one side of me, dressed in a suit, I'm in the middle wearing a yellow sweater, and my mom is on the other side of me dressed in a traditional Korean dress (Hambok).
To make a long story short, my dad received orders from the Air Force to return to the U.S. when my mom was pregnant with me. My dad was excited about my upcoming birth (his first child) and wanted to stay in Korea with my mom. He didn't want to raise an Army brat kid that gets moved around all the time. His request was denied, so after 20 years in the Air Force he put in for retirement.
For whatever reasons it took awhile for the paperwork get processed for me and my mom to come to the U.S. So when I got off the plane at Los Angeles International Airport, when I was one and a half years old, I didn't know who my father was. When my dad tried to hold me I cried and would try to push him away. When we got home my mom showed me the photo and asked me where my dad was. I pointed to my dad in the photo and then looked at my dad and that's when I realized who my dad was and it was okay after that for him to hold me and play with me. Back in Korea, my mom had shown me that photo everyday and had pointed out mama, papa and Rose. Just as I now do with Astrid.
It's funny how things can come full circle. Now I'm showing photos to my daughter and pointing out who mama and papa are. I wasn't sure if she was understanding, but now I know she was, and she can now recognize me, Uwe and herself in photos.
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3 comments:
What a great story. Do you have your own memory of that event, or are you relating it as it was told to you?
TH,
I was too young to remember it happening, but my parents love to tell that story...esp. my dad.
And I still have a fondness for that photo. My parents have a framed copy in their bedroom. Now when I go over to my parents' house I show Astrid the photo.
Yeah, I figured you were pretty young, but wondered whether there were any vague strands of memory. It's a cool story.
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