In his book, Lotta-Sofia Saahko, who is familiar with the duo Lotta ja pappa, tells what it was like to change the country, language and culture on the fly as a child – and lose my own.
The question of where you come from raises Lotta-Sofia Saahkon29, neck hair upright.
During the Korona period, he became acquainted with the duo Lotta ja pappa, who sang and chatted with some videos about Valkeakoski’s papal kitchen.
Lotta ended up in Valkeakoski from Britain when a global pandemic forced her studies in the field of theater remotely.
However, Lotta has lived a lot elsewhere as well. He was two years old when the family moved to Germany, in his teens the journey continued to China.
Adaptation
Lota’s life has been an adventure in different cultures. The painful feelings of externality have also become familiar. He talks about them in his recent book.
Already on the first day, an accident occurred in a German orchard when little Lotta could not tell in German about the distress. Even the ruffled sailor dress was different from the other animal-patterned pants.
However, Lotta adapted. He learned German and made friends. Stories, school plays and books brought joy to life.
However, just as life had begun to break out, however, the girl was ripped with her family to China.
– Don’t be so sad. Remember what all the clubs your new school has to offer. You get into the choir and the theater group, Dad and Mom tried to tease their inconsolable daughter.
For parents, moving to a new country meant adventure. They couldn’t think how heavy it was for the kids.
– I had a hole the size of Germany in my heart, Lotta recalls in the book.
Around the world, Lotta misses Finland’s snowy winters. However, returning to Finland did not meet expectations. Meri Lantela
Potted grief
Parents tried to reduce the pain associated with saying goodbye by looking ahead. Lotta hid her pain because she thought grief was wrong when her parents were passionate.
– Now I know that I should have mourned and said goodbye properly, both to friends and acquaintances, Lotta says.
The unmarried grief and the ensuing cultural shock have later affected Lota’s life in many ways. For example, he still sees nightmares about leaving for China.
– According to research data, untreated grief can become pent-up and thereby cause isolation, depression, fear, hypersensitivity, anxiety, loneliness and eating disorders, Lotta lists.
He himself has experiences with all of these.
In her book, Lotta wants to point out that the feelings of externality are really familiar to those who have moved from one place to another. He is by no means the only one without roots.
Forgiveness
Lotta does not resent her parents, even though they tore her from one child to another as a child. The matter has now been dealt with.
– Mom and Dad read the script. Both have said in retrospect that they didn’t really know about their children’s feelings and couldn’t take them into account.
– I didn’t expect my parents to apologize, but I’ve forgiven them. That was not their fault. They only saw great opportunities, not what else the life of a suitcase could cause, Lotta says now.
His book provides tips for current and future expatriate Finnish families to respond to cultural shocks and feelings of externality.
Wrong
China had to adapt to a completely new kind of culture. The language was strange, the maid bought frogs for food, the host was wearing an evening gown during the visit, and the Chinese wanted to jump on the children’s blonde hair. The worst part, though, was that the old guys stayed in Germany.
– When I complained about my loneliness and lack of friends at home, Dad said that the fault was in my own attitude. I, on the other hand, was sure that the root cause of all the problems was their decision to move to Shanghai, Lotta writes in her book.
Lotta felt like she was wrong: not from anywhere, childish, too short and more busy than others. She started losing weight.
The orderly girl wanted to do everything perfectly. Weight loss started from the glove. He contracted an eating disorder.
– I lived in a constant conflict between the two parties. I wanted to be a good daughter who eats dinner with her family, but at the same time I had to follow the commandments of my perfectionism. If I cheated on either, I whipped myself – then I had to do more abdominal movements and run, Lotta writes.
Teenager Lotta was put on a therapist. To this he stated:
– I want you to talk to your mother because my parents don’t understand me and don’t listen to my wishes. I want to move to Finland.
Outside in Finland
The family then returned to Finland. At that time, Lotta had lived abroad for 16 years and enrolled as a student at a German school in China. He spoke five languages.
But the adaptation to the Finland of dreams, the fairy tale of grandmother and dad, did not go smoothly.
Lotta didn’t know who Antti Tuisku was, she couldn’t celebrate May Day and there was no smell that an egg might mean a genitals.
– I have always wanted to adapt and be part of the group. Abroad, I thought that my incompatibility was due to my Finnishness. But when I didn’t adapt to Finland either, it felt really difficult!
– As a teenager grows, he or she usually has a place, a community, and a family to rely on. I only had a family of these, Lotta says.
It would be best for Lotta to have lived at home with her family forever. After all the moves, growing up scared him. However, the parents rushed to study.
Lotta no longer knew what she wanted from her future. She applied for and got to the University of Vaasa to study communication, about her mother’s idea.
Now Lotta knows that all of this is typical of a suitcase child: Either adulthood happens really early or it is delayed because the role of the family in the world is so significant.
Lotta clung to her family.
He was also in the yard at the university: For example, no one had said that there were no teachers in Finland.
From performance to performance
Lotta next stayed in Finland when her parents and little sister moved to Poland. The brother also stayed, but he also left for the army.
Lotta did not enjoy her studies, but she completed them with her familiar pedantry – overworked and the nurse forced her on sick leave.
Lotta graduated with a master’s degree and, again at the urging of her parents, ended up as a 25-year-old communications director at the German-Finnish Chamber of Commerce.
– Parents were my only mainstay. I wanted them to be proud of me, Lotta says now.
Books, stories, reading, writing, acting, singing and dancing – creative things – have always been important to Lota. Meri Lantela
Home to London
After doing and coping, Lotta was exhausted. She was diagnosed with depression and anxiety disorder.
In therapy, it became clear to Lota that when she moved to China, she had lost what she loved most: performing, writing, acting, singing. He realized he wanted a theater school in London.
He also got there.
The multicultural bookstores and musicals in London immediately felt like home.
– I got to be the same creative Lotta I was as a child without anyone questioning where I come from or where I belong.
Rakas pappala
Lotta is no longer interested in where she is from. The young woman knows she is a former suitcase child, now a global citizen.
– Life experiences and friends, dreams and objects of passion ultimately shape us for who we are. Cultural and national identity are just one factor, Lotta says.
Lotta has finally found herself and her place: She has become a storyteller and an artist, an international one.
Sure, Lotta wonders what her life would be like now if the family had never changed. What would it be like to live in a home with the growth of children marked on the wall with lines? What would it be like to have a friend you have known since kindergarten?
On the other hand, Lota has always had a priest and a priest from Valkeakoski.
There he still has his own base, the attic chamber, although a home can also be found in London.
Lotta Ja pappa aka Jorma Saahko has delighted Finns with their Korona-era songs and conversations. Meri Lantela
Lotta-Sofia Saahko: Home Between Cultures (January) appeared on May 3rd.