I am not multilingual. My daughters certainly are, having lived in France, Spain and Italy. Aurelle's senior thesis is about the invented languages that appear in literature. I would love to read it, but the text will be in Spanish.
I saw a quick video comparing how an English mother and a Korean one say "I love you", or "I
am sorry". In the first instance, the woman spoke to express her love or her apology. In the Korean one she offered food.
I have no idea whether this generality rings true for either culture. Surely there are English speakers who balk about saying those triplets of words. Probably, there are Korean poets who can wrap their emotions in the dance of syllables.
But it does suggest that for some of us, actions speak
louder.
The channel Off the Left Eye had an
episode about the language of angels. Amazingly, there does not seem to be the barrier of dialect for people lucky enough to have a Near Death Experience. Neither do newcomers to the afterlife seem to enroll in a crash course of Angel Speak.
God's messages to me are sometimes verbal, as in
scripture or the lyrics to a song. Other times it is an ineffable feeling, or a sweet interaction with a stranger that has meaning. Some days God speaks through daffodils whose resilience after a snow remind me that I can be brave too. Or a rainbow arching across the sky when I need to remember that hope comes in the morning.
The book that made translations easier for couples is The Five Love Languages. John and I had the chance to hear the author speak and he
was funny. But then, so is the material. When I ask my husband for affection in the medium called quality time, and he responds by mowing the lawn, it is laughable. At least if we are not fuming.