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Living Abroad: An Epiphany

Paul Allen — Thu, 06 Jan 2011 15:19:35 +0000

One of the great things about living abroad is the exposure it gives to different cultures, the countries’ traditions and their way of thinking.

Festivals and public holidays are a prime example.

For instance, in Spain – and many other Christian places around the world – the major gift-giving ceremonies associated with Christmas do not happen on December 25. Instead, they are reserved for today, the Feast of the Epiphany.

The Epiphany celebrates the revelation of Jesus Christ as the son of God, when the Magi – the wise men from the East – present their gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. For this reason, in Spain it is called El Día de los Reyes (The Day of the Kings).

In towns across the country, the evening of January 5 sees the three kings – Melchior, Caspar (or Gaspar) and Balthasar – parade through the streets, the children flanking their route straining to see and touch them. As with Santa Claus, the Magi then deliver presents during the night while the children sleep.

And when they awake the festivities begin!

Celebrating the Holiday Season Abroad

Paul Allen — Mon, 06 Dec 2010 14:16:48 +0000

The Holiday Season is well upon us. But if you live abroad you’ll need to get used to a whole different category of celebrations.

Take today, December 6. For many of us it may be another dreary Monday at work. But not everywhere …

Santa Claus is Coming to Town

December 6 is a special festival for children in many European countries, as well as some American cities – for it marks Saint Nicholas Day.

In the Netherlands in particular, Saint Nicholas’ Eve is the equivalent of Christmas Eve, when Sinterklaas (the original Santa Claus) brings gifts for all the good boys and girls. Similarly, in Germany children traditionally put a boot out for St Nicholas to fill with small presents and sweets.

Advent of Democracy

December 6 is a special holiday in Spain too, albeit for different reasons. This is Constitution Day, marking the Spanish public’s vote in 1978 to approve the Constitution of Spain, and thus the country’s formal transition to a democratic state.

As a citizen of the UK, with its long democratic history, it is easy to forget how recent the establishment of such political rights was in Spain. If I was a Spaniard, however, I would have been born in a dictatorship.

In the developed world it is easy to see democracy as a right, one we take for granted. But days like today remind me how blessed we are.

Thanksgiving and the Search for Happiness Abroad

Paul Allen — Thu, 25 Nov 2010 17:12:52 +0000

Do animals get grumpy?

Are there certain days when your cat or dog is more irritable than others? Do creatures in the wild go through mood swings? Or is it just humans?

I ask because I read this week about Cathal Morrow, an author living in Madrid. Back in June he embarked on a quest to live for a year without unhappiness, in an attempt to prove happiness is merely a state of mind.

As he writes on his blog, http://imhappyandiknowit.com/:

“What I’m attempting to live is my belief that happiness is entirely independent of the highs and lows of my little life, that it’s far bigger than me. That happiness is a permanent state for us all, if only we allow it to be.”

Being happy. We’re all looking for it, aren’t we?

Yet that appears to be the root of the problem. We’re searching for it, as if happiness is a destination that will be reached once we’ve got X, Y and Z in place.

Thanksgiving

It’s an important issue, brought into focus by this week’s Thanksgiving celebrations in the United States.

While it began as a festival giving thanks for the year’s harvest, Thanksgiving has since developed into a more general expression of gratitude.

And therein lies Mr Morrow’s secret to happiness – a determination to see the everyday brightness in life and be happy for it.

Seeking a better life

Which brings me to moving abroad.

Why is it so many people around the world – including millions of citizens in some of the most prosperous countries on the planet – want to relocate elsewhere?

For most people the interest is spurred by a desire to find a “better life,” whatever their definition may be.

Many are stirred by the potential benefits they hope to find by relocating – better weather, more leisure opportunities, lower living costs, attractive employment openings. Others see moving abroad as an escape from the unfulfilled lives they are living in their current location.

Finding Happiness

However, this desire for movement is not necessarily the path to happiness.

Yes, moving abroad can lead to a healthier, happier, richer life. But switching one country for another won’t by itself be enough. Ultimately it is an internal shift, rather than the external one, that leads to happiness and fulfilment.

Hence the importance of gratitude.

Rather than think about the things that are wrong with our lives, we should devote more attention to the things that are right.

It could be your health, or the health of your partner or children, the love of family, laughter with friends, the joy of a sunrise or waves on the beach, thanks for the food you have to eat.

Which isn’t to say you shouldn’t want to improve your current situation. It is human nature, one of the driving forces of evolution. But by stopping to give conscious thanks for those daily blessings we too often take for granted, the chances are you will be a happier person, wherever in the world you happen to find yourself.

Who could ask for a better life than that?

Carnival

Paul Allen — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 18:58:21 +0000

It’s Mardi Gras next Tuesday, and around the world people are gearing up for Carnival.

Being from England this is a somewhat alien and exotic event, conjuring up Rio, New Orleans and Venice, with their colourful processions, music, dancing, and reputation for louche behaviour.

But living in Spain I’m now getting to experience Carnival first hand. And while it has elements of all of the above – an event that has an anything-goes licence – it is more than that too.

There is certainly a lot of drunkenness that goes with the parades and the parties – and no doubt a lot more besides …

But it’s a festival for kids too. They dress up in costumes, make masks, sing and dance and throw confetti, and generally have a blast.

My bemused daughter has been caught up in Carnival activities at school all week long – wearing one of my ties to school one day, an apron the next, having her face painted the day after. And while she (and we) may not yet understand the local significance of it all, she and her schoolmates are clearly delighted by it all.

I’m discovering that Carnival, at heart, is pure celebration of life itself. And I’m sure we could all use a bit more of that.

A Midsummer Night’s Dream

Paul Allen — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 18:16:05 +0000

It was the festival of Sant Joan (St. John) this week in Catalunya. The celebrations start at sunset on June 23 and run through until sunrise on the 24^th (which is the feast day marking the birth of St John the Baptist), and are popularly known in this region as the Nit del Foc, meaning “night of fire.”

It is also the noisiest night of the year. Fire, with its purifying qualities, is one of the three symbols of the festival. As such it is traditional to light bonfires, as the flames are supposed to scare off the imaginary creastures that come out at night, and to ward off bad luck for the remainder of the year.

And along with the bonfires come huge organised firework displays, as well as a general and continuous explosion of rockets and firecrackers from every quarter, which lasts right through until dawn. Of course, you can imagine what licence for uproar this gives to the local kids.

A second symbol associated with Sant Joan is water, which is supposed to have curative powers on this night. According to the Barcelona city council’s website (http://www.bcn.es/santjoan/en/simbols.html), it is also customary to collect thyme, rosemary and verbena, as the powers of medicinal plants are thought to increase during this period.

Taken together, the Christian religious festival and these pagan Midsummer symbols that underlie it speak of purification and health, of rebirth. Not that many of the celebrants looked all that rejuvenated on the feast day itself I noticed, having been up most of the night. Nevertheless, the fiesta seemed to me a fitting reminder to all of us to make the most of the passing year.

To this end, it should mean celebrating our health and summer’s blessings. And also to seek out our own form of “rebirth,” in the sense of creating a better life for ourselves, whatever form your goals may take.