I was thinking about my earlier post ‘cultural differences‘, and would like to expand on that a little…

Memories are like a deep, dark, quiet pool of still water. Then once a while a single drop of water would fall into the pool, and there would be ripples, and certain memories from your younger days awakened. Obviously I paraphrased this from somewhere, as I am not that clever as to come up with this analogy by myself.

Anyway I suddenly remembered that I went through a period when I detested human contact. This must have been during the rebellious teen years. I didn’t like to be touched. Skin to skin was disgusting and loathsome. I think it was brought on by a slight OCD case when I was younger. Yes I just self-diagnosed. But when I think about it now, it doesn’t seem right that I needed to neutralise every action. Think Jack Nicholson in the movie ‘As Good As It Gets’ multiple times of switching the light, locking the door and the importance of equal stepping when you walk. These and other little similar stuff, I am happy that I am off it now.

Back then, the human contact thing was like, if someone touched me, I felt an irrational desire to instantly wash or rub the spot where the skin has been touched. Otherwise I would feel dirty and uncomfortable ( though I was good at hiding it ). I remember how and why I got out of the neutraliser action phase, but not how nor why I got out of the skin touching phase. But I did. No, you still can’t touch me if you are a stranger to me.

It seems that this has nothing to do with cultural differences anymore. I think my initial points are that, I am not a natural touchy-feely person unless I really like you, which means you have to be either a member of my family, or my close friends, or my bf. I know some people have this thing of touching the other person everytime they speak and try to make a point. I understand that it’s their thing, but it’s a bit weird for me lor. Like how some people retreat to a corner when they are in an elevator; they are protecting their personal space as much as they can.

So my very digressed point is, please avoid the two cheek kissing thing with me, unless you have been brought up in an environment where it is the norm, or you really need to fulfill your daily human contact quota.

But if you go ‘lah’ at the end of every sentence and you still do the single or double cheek kissing thing with me, I shall smack you. You just wait and see lah.