Yesterday marked our 9th month in Switzerland. Its hard to believe that equates to being 25% of the way thru our 3year commitment! Hubby and I reflected on this at 6am over a cup of coffee. I must admit, realizing this milestone made me a bit sad. I am so amazed at how much each of us has learned, grown, stretched ourselves, seen, digested, and accomplished in 9 months. It has already been an amazing experience - mainly from the adjustment to living in Europe and to the travels.
Hubby and I discussed the adjustment. It has been incredible to leave a beautiful life we lived in Il - full of friends, great schools, loving family, stability, great job of hubby's. It truly was a charmed highly happy personal and work life and required a big leap of faith to think we could recapture the happiness we felt in our daily life in IL. We left all the security, and leapt without a safety net, quickly weaving a net based on our faith....faith in God, faith in ourselves, faith in each other, faith in mankind.
We still dearly miss our American life, but living away has opened our eyes to a new perspective on the bigger American picture and we do see a couple facets of the larger American life that give rise to much conern. I did not watch the news in the US and each day I am filled with sadness.....the crazy weather systems have reaked havoc on our country, the unemployment statistics with the dismal outlook, the pooor soldiers dying in the warfronts, and the selfish, greedy, self-centered politicians whose priorities are clearly personal power rather than consensus and mutual success just disgusts me.
The thing that frightens me the most when I look back on America is the lack of personal safety. Personal crimes are rampant, a daily event in every city. Each week there seems to be a woman or child missing, and when found, it is with unimaginable....indescribable ....results. This just doesn't happen in Europe...Why does it happen in America?
I recently read a book called The Hunger Games. It tells a story about life in North America in the future, where selected teenage citizens are forced to barbaric survival fighting for the entertainment (and intimidation) of the masses. The irony is that the story set in the future, where you would expect mankind to have progressed in civility, yet the concept of fighting to the death is so barbaric - and is more reminiscent of ancient times...how the Romans forced their prisoner Gladiators to fight for entertainment. I couldn't help but look at America - we have made so many amazing accomplishments and evolution in our 240 year history, in creating a world leader from barren land. In such a relatively short time we have surpassed the world in terms of our global power...we are progressive, ingeniously clever, industrious, productive, multi-tasking, hard-working, mobile, fun-seeking, live full lives, freedom and developed so much convenience.....it is truly the land of opportunity. Yet, I have so much trouble understanding how the land of opportunity and aggressive progressiveness has such terrible crime.
The crime makes me so sad. I see that in some ways, America is so progressive and in other ways it is soooo backwards. Is it rooted in our puritanical heritage? Does our society inhibit people who are a bit quirky to the point of driving them to psychosis? Or do we just not tend to the people who need help? Is the country so big that these people fall below the radar? Is our life so busy that we overlook potential dangerous people? Is our country so big that it is unwieldy and impossible to manage? Is our industrious capitalist society too lassez faire? Are we so much more preoccupied with financial accomplishments than justice? Caring for the needy? Personal gain over greater good?
Here in Europe I see how slow life is....sometimes it is irritatingly slow for this NewYork girl, but I can understand now that greater good that comes of it. People DO NOT walk around with food in hand, and a coffee in the other, but rather sit and linger when the eat and drink. Stress levels are low, and life is very easy. peaceful, and enjoyable. They tend to live in the moment, rather than rushing to the next. Customer service is lacking here - there's simply no need to rush, and be eager to please. They are not big multi-taskers, as there's a mentality of do one thing at a time, and do it right. With it comes a great quality of life.
I admire the sense of community - not that I am really part of the Swiss community, but rather the expat community. Nonetheless, the Swiss stay VERYCLOSE to their friends and family. They are a very private closeknit people, keeping to themselves, and very loyal. Americans are such a jovial friendly lot. Once we meet someone, we readily use the term "friend." The Swiss use a greater variety of terms for others: acquaintance, colleague, neighbor....reserving the term "friend" for a longterm friend or confidant. They are also big tattlers and have no problem telling anyone who is stepping out of line that they are wrong and to get back in line. I think this intrusive oversight keeps things orderly. Swiss people respect rules so much, that culturally, they do not fight back. When they break a rule, they know it when they are called on it, and generally fall back in line without protest. They are a conscientious lot, and generally acknowledge that the greater good outweighs personal gain.
The Europeans are not nearly as modest and inhibited as the Americans. In the warm months, I see some sort of nudity daily- at the Badis (swimming areas). Women go topless without concern, women wear bikinis regardless of body shape. Children (up to perhaps the age of 10) change clothes in public without worrying about "someone seeing them." Zurich, like many European cities, has a legal red-light district where consenting can do what they wish, and also has a "needle park," where users can acquire free clean needles and dispose of them safely. These are very socially progressive policies and I must say that although I personally benefit from none of them, I can see the wisdom and wonder what effect they have on the low crime rates, lack of personal crimes, and personal health.
So sorry for the SocioEconomic ramblings of a woman 25% thru a 3 year adventure, but I had to share with you my mental wanderings....
Ok - so back on topic. The 25% milestone also made generated a twinge of panic - Oh my, there's still so much we have yet to see and experience....I'd better get travel planning....and that is my next project....and blog.
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