So after a long absence, I return here ... to what makes me happy. In my never-ending search for happiness, in this country of, what seems to be, never-ending sadness, I have found that reading helps me a lot. As a child books were my life, and I would lose myself in my thought provoking, imagination intensifying library, trying to find the meaning of my life. In spite of this, though, I still feel a big empty space somewhere. It is a void which I find especially hard to fill here in Greece. As a child I would spend hours in the public library, searching for newer, more exciting adventures. In a small Welsh town, being a foreigner also meant being different. Those of you who are Greek, or who have seen "My Big Fat Greek Wedding", will know exactly what I mean. The movie was no great exaggeration, believe me.
What I did not know at the time, was how special it is to be me. I had the fortune of living a double life. I had two completely different cultures invading my life every day, two languages battling their way through my brain, two ways of life... and I survived. I survived school, I survived university and I survived the working environment. The problem, though, was that I never felt that I fitted in. The rainy weather, grey skyline, 9 to 5 routine always felt a little alien to me. So, after great thought moving to Greece became an obsession until it happened.
Now, Southern Europe has a lot to offer - more than anyone could imagine... more than its own people actually realise. Having lived here now for nearly 20 years, its attributes far outweigh any of its drawbacks. Something that weighs heavily on my mind, though, is ...am I the only one who sees this? Greece has wonderful arable land, with some regions having virtually the most favorable weather conditions and soil for cultivation. It has clean seas, and wonderful beaches. Its tremendous history and wealth of culture is outstanding. Even its food is wonderful. So what is holding this great place back? Why isn't it the country it should be?... and more importantly why do I feel that, again, I do not fit in?
Each time I ask myself these questions sadness overwhelms me and I find myself incapable of understanding what went wrong. Now, as life here becomes harder and harder, and the government's measures become more and more ridiculous, I find myself asking other questions like why hopelessness is constantly in the air, and it's not just in the air - it's actually being spread through the air, by the media, by the local authorities, by the diabolical political system. Another question is why no-one seeks opportunities,and when I say no-one I really mean not one person. People are becoming more and more complacent and are just satisfied with the notion that we are all in the same situation - we are all going through this crisis together so what can we do? No-one can actually see any light through the tunnel and what's even worse no-one is actually looking for the light.
However, my topic today is happiness and my quest for it, so I will pause here and not go into the "greek sitaution" again. Happiness is an ideal we all live and search for. My imagination makes my happiness, so every day I search through my foggy mind in search of those things that I love, that make me happy, that put a stupid smile on my face for the whole day. I linger on those thoughts and let them captivate me. I see my dreams coming true and my life having meaning ... and that gets me through my day. I say thank you to everything and everyone just because I am thankful to them for being part of my life - reminding me that I should be thankful for life. In my mind, I remember that young girl who would search each shelf of the bookcase looking for that new adventure that would be the air beneath her wings. So as I try to find "happy", I suggest you do to... find that place in your mind where happy lives and go there ... often ... as often as you can ... and keep smiling .... whether you are in that small Welsh town or on that sunny Greek beach... find happy....
What I did not know at the time, was how special it is to be me. I had the fortune of living a double life. I had two completely different cultures invading my life every day, two languages battling their way through my brain, two ways of life... and I survived. I survived school, I survived university and I survived the working environment. The problem, though, was that I never felt that I fitted in. The rainy weather, grey skyline, 9 to 5 routine always felt a little alien to me. So, after great thought moving to Greece became an obsession until it happened.
Now, Southern Europe has a lot to offer - more than anyone could imagine... more than its own people actually realise. Having lived here now for nearly 20 years, its attributes far outweigh any of its drawbacks. Something that weighs heavily on my mind, though, is ...am I the only one who sees this? Greece has wonderful arable land, with some regions having virtually the most favorable weather conditions and soil for cultivation. It has clean seas, and wonderful beaches. Its tremendous history and wealth of culture is outstanding. Even its food is wonderful. So what is holding this great place back? Why isn't it the country it should be?... and more importantly why do I feel that, again, I do not fit in?
Each time I ask myself these questions sadness overwhelms me and I find myself incapable of understanding what went wrong. Now, as life here becomes harder and harder, and the government's measures become more and more ridiculous, I find myself asking other questions like why hopelessness is constantly in the air, and it's not just in the air - it's actually being spread through the air, by the media, by the local authorities, by the diabolical political system. Another question is why no-one seeks opportunities,and when I say no-one I really mean not one person. People are becoming more and more complacent and are just satisfied with the notion that we are all in the same situation - we are all going through this crisis together so what can we do? No-one can actually see any light through the tunnel and what's even worse no-one is actually looking for the light.
However, my topic today is happiness and my quest for it, so I will pause here and not go into the "greek sitaution" again. Happiness is an ideal we all live and search for. My imagination makes my happiness, so every day I search through my foggy mind in search of those things that I love, that make me happy, that put a stupid smile on my face for the whole day. I linger on those thoughts and let them captivate me. I see my dreams coming true and my life having meaning ... and that gets me through my day. I say thank you to everything and everyone just because I am thankful to them for being part of my life - reminding me that I should be thankful for life. In my mind, I remember that young girl who would search each shelf of the bookcase looking for that new adventure that would be the air beneath her wings. So as I try to find "happy", I suggest you do to... find that place in your mind where happy lives and go there ... often ... as often as you can ... and keep smiling .... whether you are in that small Welsh town or on that sunny Greek beach... find happy....
