Issue #5 - October 22, 1999
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brought to you by Laurie Riddell Geary, M.Ed., PCC: Coaching you to get your life in gear by making shifts, getting unstuck, finding balance and alignment, accelerating your growth, and mapping the best route to your chosen destination:your perfect life.
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GIDGET GOES TO THE CONVENT
(copyright Laurie R. Geary, 1999, all rights reserved)
 

     One day I was your typical teenage California surfer girl living near Windansea Beach in La Jolla, and a month later I was stuck in a catholic convent in Malaga, Spain, dragged there, along with my younger sister, by my divorcee mother looking for adventure. The culture shock was severe.

     I was accustomed to the freedom of going out on dates, going to parties
and after-football game dances, hanging out on the beach with my friends, and,
I had never even been to church!

     The Convent allowed no such freedom--no dates, no dances or
parties, no football games, no beach, and no friends. Instead we went to
chapel three times a day (all day on Holy Days). We wore uncomfortable and
unattractive uniforms with clunky shoes. We were allowed to take baths only
once per week. No talking was permitted during meals, before breakfast, or on
Holy Days. And, on top of all that, no one spoke a word of English; I spoke
no Spanish. I was miserable. I felt trapped and isolated, and homesickness
engulfed me.

     I experienced what it felt like to be a minority student. I was blonde and
blue-eyed in a covey of girls with dark hair and dark eyes. They stared, pointed
at me, whispered about me--I felt like a freak and cried every night in my
little sleeping cubicle.

     Eventually I adjusted: I learned to speak Spanish in a few weeks and
could finally communicate as we sat over our embroidery in the garden (I had been placed in the "secretariada tract" since I couldn't speak Spanish well-enough for the "bachillerato" or "college" tract). Trini became my friend: a girl from a typical Spanish family with twelve siblings. She opened my eyes to the beauty of Spain: Flamenco music and dancing, fiestas, Semana Santa (the Easter week processions), paella, and bullfights...and, she introduced me to her brothers! When I was serenaded by a young Spaniard under my bedroom window while I was at home one weekend, I fell in love with the romance of Spain.

     We stayed in the convent for 6 months, then traveled extensively through Europe, to eventually return to Spain - not to Malaga this time, but to Madrid,
where I attended an American (Torrejon) Air Force Base school and graduated. Finally, after three years, I returned to the U.S. for college.

     My experiences in Spain were very traumatic at times but these experiences most definitely changed me in many positive ways. I know I am a different person from whom I might have been had I remained as "Gidget-on- the-beach" in California, which was made startlingly clear when I attended my 25th high school reunion years later.
 

What I Learned/Gained:

*Cultural Diversity: I developed a real understanding of a different culture: its language, religion, customs, and, especially, its people.

*Self-Confidence: I developed a greater understanding of myself through        learning new skills and coping strategies. I like to think I turned adversity into opportunity and became a lifelong "climber" (see "The Adversity Quotient" by Paul Stolz)

*Awareness: I developed a sensitivity to minorities that I think led in part to my      social activism in the Sixties' civil rights movement when I attended a Virginia college;

*Risk-taking: I learned new coping skills, developed new strengths, and found inner courage; all have served me well in other risking situations.

*Spanish: Speaking Spanish has brought me many new friends and exciting experiences throughout my life that I never would have had.

*A Role-Model: My mother followed her dream:she took her two daughters to Spain to recreate her life and have fabulous adventures. She showed me how to do it - how to take risks that lead to personal growth and an exciting and fulfilling life -I have learned that it's possible to create the life you want! And I like to think that now I am a role model to my family, friends, and clients as I continue to take responsible risks for personal growth and positive change.
 

TAREA:
*Think about a time in your life that was a turning point: write it down; identify what you learned and how it affects you today (I would love to hear from any of you about your experiences)
 

*Email me (laurie@ingearcoaching.com) for the complete article about my experiences in Spain as well as articles written by my mother about her experiences traveling abroad with her two teenage daughters
 

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*Call /email me for a Complimentary Coaching Session (in English or Spanish!)
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*Check out my website (http://www.ingearcoaching.com) for other articles, assessment tools, and some great "free stuff!"

***Also there find out how to order my son, Derek's, new (and first!) CD of his original piano compositions: WIRE*** (or go to http://www.derekgeary.com)

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 (Upcoming, Free)TELECLASS:
 "Happy Holidays: Preventing, Reducing, or finally Eliminating Holiday Conflict" in November and December. For a description or to Register: Go to my website, or http://www.teleclass.com or http://www.teleclass4U.com
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I hope you enjoyed this issue; I would love to hear your feedback on this and subsequent issues. Please feel free to forward your copy of this email to anyone you think might enjoy reading it. I just request that you keep the broadcast intact...nothing changed, added or deleted, including subscription information and my contact and copyright information. Thank you
 
 

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Laurie R. Geary, M.Ed.
Professional  Certified Coach

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Phone: (617)494-1422
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