I was talking with some family and friends over the weekend, and the topic of how people view different people came up. Out of curiosity, someone asked me what I honestly thought of them. After a moment's thought, I realized that I didn't really have an actual thought that could be described in one sentence. Don't worry -- I'm really close to the person who asked me, but I was a little confused at myself for my odd sense of thinking.
Instead of an actual thought, something in a complete sentence, I realize that I do a lot of my thinking and analyzing in pictures and colors. Odd, ain't it?
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| Ice block = my thoughts. |
I guess I do most of it without realizing it. People I meet on the street, my family, friends I've known for years... everyone around me I semi-consciously assign them a color, images, words. It's more of a collage, really. And it doesn't always make sense. I'll associate people with colors based on what their personality is, what they might have worn the first time I met them, or even something that just makes me think of them. And at this point I'm just baffled thinking about how me, the girl who LOVES words, doesn't even do very many words when I'm just thinking on my own.
Did you sing that last bit? I did.
What do I mean? Let's phrase it this way... when I think of my father, the first thing that comes to mind is a picture of his pillow. I'm attributing that to a memory I have -- as a child I would often snuggle on my mom and dad's bed and bury my face in their pillows. My dad had a distinct scent that I loved, and since then, I always felt safe whenever I smelled that, whether I was on his pillow or in his embrace.
My mother first makes me think of the color peach -- vibrant, cheerful, sweet, and warm. For my sister Beth, it's those cobalt blue chevron stripe/v-shaped pattern thingys. My sister Jessa -- pink cupcakes and green polka dots. My brother Doofus -- a mottled collage of red, yellow, green, and antique history book colors. Teddy? Cherries, stuffed animals, and pink flowers. KT Bugs is fruit flavored candy and adorable smiles on top of bubble gum pink and an almost golden tone. I have colors and images for pretty much everyone I know.
What about my other characters? Celesta from SotHT is a mix of gray, a light yellow, and a dash of royal blue while Prince Julien (from the same book) is a mottled blend of three different purples. Fort Gregorick from Beyond the Thorns is mostly a deep scarlet with some chocolate brown and dark green on the outside.
But what about images? Let me give you some examples. Grant from The Dragon Tamer conjures up pictures of swords, sweaty palms, green grass, daring smiles, and fires. That's not technically a description of his character, but that's what I think of when I hear his name. Josette from The Twelfth Kingdom is a little tougher to pin down with exact images, but I see a lot of green gowns, blue flowers, tiny slippers, timidity, dark passageways, and frilly bedclothes.
Yeah, that's me.... I realize this post may sound really weird, but I'm just an odd duck. If you didn't know that about me already, it's probably time that you did.
What about you? How do you think of people?
God bless!
This does not sound odd at all. In fact, I completely understand what you mean, although I tend to see people more in a scene, almost like a photograph, as opposed to thinking of them in colors.
ReplyDeleteHooray for August! Can't wait to see you then.
That's so interesting! So.... when you think of me, what photograph comes to mind? :) Just curious...
DeleteThis is so cool, Kiri! I wouldn't say it's odd, we all see things differently. I find it fascinating! And you know, I almost kinda do that myself. Maybe not quite as strongly as you, but I definitely know where you're coming from.
ReplyDeleteHave you heard of synesthesia? Because I think this would qualify as that. The most common form of synesthesia I think is when letters have colors in a person's mind, so this is very similar. I definitely have some form of synesthesia. I see colors with all the letters and usually words. Like the letter M is a brick red and L is a soft yellow. And, in fact, I DEFINITELY associate people with colors, my characters especially. So I totally understand what you're saying on that aspect! Like Donovan from Secrets of Camelot is a dark green with some earthy brown thrown in. It's all just really cool. I am kind of obsessed with personality traits like this, I get so excited exploring how people's brains work. This post was so interesting! I think it's awesome how you see people.
I've actually never heard of synesthesia. *mental note to RESEARCH*
DeleteYES!!! Letters do look like colors!! M is, yup... a dark red, although I see it a little more maroon than brick. And L, to me, has always been almost a neon green. S alternates between gray and yellow, and then P is always lilac. That's just so weird that our brains work that way! Truly, the more I learn about the human body and the way God made us, the more I am amazed at His power and genius.
Yes, this sounds like synesthesia. There are all types, but it is basically when some of the senses overlap. I am kinda of jealous. These types of people seem more creative. When I first heard of synesthesia (from the book Ultraviolet, be careful about the sequel I don't know if I would recommend it), I thought of the author L.M. Montgomery and how she wrote. Anne talking about souls as flowers, Philippa talking about being blue, a delicate shade and not navy, and her giving things personality.
ReplyDeleteWell, Livia, since you seconded it, it must be true. I just read up about synesthesia on Wikipedia, and it's almost scary how closely I think to those descriptions. O.O
DeleteOoh! L.M. Montgomery! Huh, I never thought of that, but you're right. For some odd reason, I've always felt a connection with Anne and wondered at it, especially since I'm not what you'd call a drama queen and I don't have red hair or a boy in my class who calls me carrots. But the synesthesia makes sense. I especially like Philippa's being blue -- the delicate shade definitely tops the navy in that sense.