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MY (R)EVOLUTION, PART 9.

Since April 18 of this year, Nicaragua has been in a state of social unrest, as some newspapers still want to describe it.

Knowing the history of this country, that only 40 years ago finally came to a democratic solution after 28 years of civil war trying to overthrow a dictatorship, “social unrest” is a bit of an oxymoron.

When hundreds of thousands of people take to the streets in organised protest marches multiple times, throughout the country and for weeks on end, you can still just call that social unrest.

When the main reason for those marches is that 70% of the nation want their president and his wife to step down, calling him a dictator and demanding to return their country to democracy, I’d say that is the start of a revolution, especially when the president does not seem to be wiling to make any concessions towards a peaceful and democratic solution.

When those same people continue their peaceful marches while they are risking getting injured or killed by police violence, I’d call that a civil determination for change that cannot be brought back to rest.

They are willing to give their lives, as their parents and grandparents did half a century ago.

It has made me wonder about the evolution of revolution. 

Image by Luc Galoppin on Flickr

 

My (R)evolution, part 7.

There was a time, that in the eyes of most people I was “living the dream”. I always contested that, saying I was just living my life—making a living, dealing with problems—like any other person. The only difference being, that I was doing that on a beautiful little Caribbean island.

I’m not much of an achiever, so I’ve never bothered to “tick off” things from my bucket list. I’ve never had a bucket list to begin with (Living the dream, check. Opening my own yoga studio, check. Starting a blog, check).

Nor have I ever checked my life against Maslow’s pyramid, to see how well I was doing in terms of personal fulfilment and self-realisation.

But the other day that pyramid popped into my viewfinder, and I started thinking about it.

Maslow’s pyramid looks at the different levels of fulfilment in a human life. At the bottom it is about the very basic needs, that have to be fulfilled first before we can start thinking (and worrying) about the next level, and so on. The theory is, that ultimate fulfilment (the top) leads to real happiness.

I have been very happy in the past 13 years that I have been calling this little Nicaraguan island my home. 

Living your dream isn't brave.

For the last 10 years, I have been living my dream, by myself, in a strange land far from everything that is (or was) familiar.

People see that and they think they would never be able to do it themselves, so they tell me I’m brave.

But I don’t really deserve a medal. Living your dream isn’t brave.

To me, brave people are those who risk their own lives or freedom for the sake of others. The people who overcome tremendous difficulty in life and can still find a smile in their hearts. The people who suffer deeply, but don’t give up hope.

Those are the brave ones, and I’m not of their calibre.

All I have done is get sacked from a job, pack a bag, and take off travelling, leaving the demands of modern society behind for some adventure and freedom. How brave is that?

So no, living your dream isn’t brave. I’m not brave. It’s that I have been able to let go of most of my fears.

Many of us are full of fears of all shapes and sizes: fear of losing our jobs, partners, money, or health; fear of losing face, of rejection, of abandonment; fear of gaining weight, not being pretty or good enough.

We fear failure in every way.

But when the fears subside, life begins. Continue reading “Living Your Dream isn’t Brave.”