:: Wednesday, April 21, 2004 ::

You gotta go where you want to go, do you want to do...

It's official: In August, I will be attending classes at Högskolan Dalarna in Sweden!!!
Yes yes yes! Of course, this assumes that the Swedish Migration Board approves me for a residence permit, but I'm thinking they will, and then I'll be ensconced in the wonders of the Magisterutbildning i Europeisk Politisk Sociologi, or as we Americans say, Masters Degree in European Political Sociology.

I'm still having trouble believing this is actually happening - going to Sweden has been a dream of mine for a few years now, and it finally seems to be within my grasp. With this program, I will only be there for a year, but my ultimate goal is to stay there and eventually become a citizen, so there are still many steps to go through until I reach that point. But this is the first step, and once I'm over there, who knows what new vistas and opportunities might open for me? I, for one, am optimistic (a somewhat strange state of being for me, I'll admit) - I'm thinking I may finally be able to get my life on track and maybe even (gasp!) find a little happiness along the way.

Now I do realize that Sweden itself may not be the utopia that I seem to make it out to be - every place has its own pros (socialism that works!) and cons (it's damn cold there!), and I'm not naive enough to think that simply moving to another country will solve all my problems (perceived or otherwise). But I am a firm believer in the effects of one's environment on a person, and that a change in setting, scenery, people, or anything else can act as catalyst for personal change.

For the past few years, I've been trying to live up to a quote from Kenneth Tynan:

"Contentment is always bought at the price of one's liberty: that is what distinguishes it from happiness."

I've sort of taken this as a mantra for my life, and I think it is applicable to this situation as well. As long as I'm not content to stay in one place, to accept what is given me, to be what everyone thinks I should be, as long as I constantly strive to break free, to follow my dreams, to liberate myself from what I see as [American] society's shackles, then I can achieve happiness.

And Sweden, I believe, is where I can find that freedom for myself.

Skål!

:: posted by Rob 8:15 PM [+] :: 0 comments
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