It's funny.
I don't feel like a stranger when I walk around and hear people speaking Swedish in the street. I know enough of the lingo now!
What makes me feel like a stranger? When I'm watching a Swedish TV show and I don't recognise a single celebrity or well-known song but everyone around me does!
And then it hits me: I don't know anything here! Where the HELL am I??!!!!
I haven't been here long. The past events and experiences that form the kernel of Swedish cultural knowledge were quite literally 'before my time'. I simply wasn't there.
It's a black hole.
A blind spot.
As a result there will always be jokes that I will never be 'in on' and there will always be nostalgic 'remember-when' conversations to which I cannot partake.
A blind spot.
As a result there will always be jokes that I will never be 'in on' and there will always be nostalgic 'remember-when' conversations to which I cannot partake.
It's a rather isolating experience.
It's true that I can never be a part of what came before. But I can be a part of what happens from now on! And that is an encouraging thought.
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