I was born on 28th October 1981 in Athens, Greece. 28th October is a Greek national holiday celebrated throughout Greece, Cyprus and the Greek communities around the world each year. Ohi Day (Greek: Επετειος του Οχι, Epetios tou ohi meaning “Anniversary of No”) commemorates the day that Greek dictator Ioannis Metaxas rejected the ultimatum given by Italian dictator, Benito Mussolini, on October 28, 1940, the Hellenic counterattack against the invading Italian forces at the mountains of Pindus during the Greco-Italian War and the Greek Resistance during the Axis occupation.
My father survived the Axis occupation (Greek: Η Κατοχή, I Katochi, meaning "The Occupation"). His father was a general who was lost during the war. He had 4 siblings, an eldest sister and 3 brothers, they have passed away, who his mother raised on her own. Times were hard for them but they made it through and they all got educated and some got to universities and did very well for themselves. My father is a civil engineer and my memories are of him in his office in Bahrain, where we lived up until the Gulf War, drowning in blue prints. I loved it when my mother took me to his office to visit him. My father is my hero and I always looked up to him and wanted to be as good as him at my job; I too wanted to have a job that I got lost in for hours as he did. He worked with great zeal, he was meticulous, calculative and honest. Honest, what a great word and what a great word to describe my father by.
My father survived the Axis occupation (Greek: Η Κατοχή, I Katochi, meaning "The Occupation"). His father was a general who was lost during the war. He had 4 siblings, an eldest sister and 3 brothers, they have passed away, who his mother raised on her own. Times were hard for them but they made it through and they all got educated and some got to universities and did very well for themselves. My father is a civil engineer and my memories are of him in his office in Bahrain, where we lived up until the Gulf War, drowning in blue prints. I loved it when my mother took me to his office to visit him. My father is my hero and I always looked up to him and wanted to be as good as him at my job; I too wanted to have a job that I got lost in for hours as he did. He worked with great zeal, he was meticulous, calculative and honest. Honest, what a great word and what a great word to describe my father by.
You see the sad thing is that a quality as that nowadays is considered a weakness, especially in a country like Greece. I have heard my mother regretfully say that “if we were clever, like the others, we would have financial security”. Yes, living in Greece at times felt like eat or be eaten. Whether you liked it or not, you had to either join them or fight them, and they were just too many. My father made a lot of money and lost a lot of money, but that’s ok. One thing I have learned in my life is, that money comes and goes, but what stays is you; your values, your morals, your conscience and your family.
My father worked hard, didn’t steal or cheat, raised a family and paid his taxes. And today? Is he enjoying the liberties of having worked hard and paying taxes? Is he enjoying his pension? Well, today my father is withdrawing 50€ a day, because the banks are in fact out of €20 notes, so they can’t even get the 60€ they were promised. Is he worried? Is my mother worried? My sisters? My cousin? I think it’s gone beyond that. There used to be stress and worry, and somehow, somewhere it’s gone beyond that. We had to adjust to living with less. We had to adjust to spending what we actually earned, which is a good thing I think. Then we had to adjust to austerity measures, “haratsi” taxes (special property tax levy that doubled the amount due, and which was put into electricity bills) and bills that we were unable to pay. The first time you cannot pay, yes, you stress. Then more bills, then less pension and then it gets so big, so far from you, so impossible, so unreal and you are just so powerless that it just doesn’t even touch you anymore. Today, we are just trying to survive. We have lost it all and what we are desperately trying to hold onto is the will to continue living. When all is gone and you are still here, you realize that all you want is your health and your loved ones.
I don’t own a television and a lot of times, I miss things happening in the world. I am not proud of this and It’s not a disinterest in the world, I just don’t like submitting myself to this fear driven news reporting; it’s just too much sometimes for me. Free daily newspapers on the tube I find are too trashy featuring tabloid news and on top of that, mostly filled with fear creating stories of deaths, rapes and disasters. I don’t feel that political views are subjectively reported and so I just don’t follow. With politics I also lacked interest and failed to inform myself up until a week ago. I was at a dinner with friends and met a friend of theirs, a banker, who of course upon hearing I was Greek preceded to ask me what I thought would happen in Greece. I had no idea of the referendum as I had not informed myself. The next day, I was driven by a strong desire to get informed; and I did. I spent hours that day, and hours every day since, reading posts and articles on this situation, posts on blogs, posts of friends and strangers on facebook and on news reporting websites, and speaking to people I know had a good political or economic knowledge. I wanted to know and I wanted to understand.
Today is a big day for my country. I wish I was there to contribute with my vote but for the last 3 years I live in London. I guess I gave up on my country three years ago as I knew that I could not follow my dream there. Like I said, I wanted to be like my father and have a career like his, and like my father, I knew that to do that, I had to leave Greece. Many lately have said to me that I did well as yes, for my career and future it seems to have been a good decision. It does not make me happy however, as I know I speak for every Greek forced to become an immigrant that there is no place like home. I am Greek and I always will be. And I always will be proud to be Greek. No one will ever take that away from me. My country is beautiful and my people, when they are loving, are welcoming and warm and loud and passionate and radiate. The sun, the sea, the Greek food and temperament and the Greek family bond will always be in my heart.
Today we Greeks will vote.
I personally, in my humble opinion formed from the extensive examining of materials available on the internet, believe that we should say no. And going back to Ohi Day, the date I was born on, remembering that over 70 years ago, us Greeks once before stood up and said no and fought for our right to freedom.
I believe there should be a united Europe but a Europe with such an imbalance between its countries is not in my opinion united. United to me, means to support each other, and not nail each other down into the ground. We say that Greeks are at each other’s throats but does it not feel that this Europe is the same? I do not want Greece out of Europe or out of the euro but it is my understanding that even if that were to happen, even if we return to the drachma, we have a chance, yes in many years to restructure our economy. Saying yes, seems like saying yes to a situation we know doesn’t work. To a situation that will bring my people to their knees. And saying yes out of fear is simply something I refuse to do.
All I wish is that we consider Greece’s best interest. I wish that Greeks unite with love to fight for their right to a life. Old people deserve to enjoy their old age with the pension they have earned, young people have a right to dream. We have been robbed of our simple human rights to living and this has to stop. I do not care to argue left or right wing, I care for a better Greece, a united Greece, one where we all take responsibility together for our country, where we care about our neighbour and where we all pay all our taxes.
I am not religious, but the last week, I have been praying that "God" takes care of our Greece and that my people vote with the best interest of our country.
I say OXI.
No to bowing my head low, no to hatred and anger, no to a broken Greece, no to more unemployment and reduced pensions, and no to corruption. May today yield the best result for my country and my people.
Greece, I love you.
My father worked hard, didn’t steal or cheat, raised a family and paid his taxes. And today? Is he enjoying the liberties of having worked hard and paying taxes? Is he enjoying his pension? Well, today my father is withdrawing 50€ a day, because the banks are in fact out of €20 notes, so they can’t even get the 60€ they were promised. Is he worried? Is my mother worried? My sisters? My cousin? I think it’s gone beyond that. There used to be stress and worry, and somehow, somewhere it’s gone beyond that. We had to adjust to living with less. We had to adjust to spending what we actually earned, which is a good thing I think. Then we had to adjust to austerity measures, “haratsi” taxes (special property tax levy that doubled the amount due, and which was put into electricity bills) and bills that we were unable to pay. The first time you cannot pay, yes, you stress. Then more bills, then less pension and then it gets so big, so far from you, so impossible, so unreal and you are just so powerless that it just doesn’t even touch you anymore. Today, we are just trying to survive. We have lost it all and what we are desperately trying to hold onto is the will to continue living. When all is gone and you are still here, you realize that all you want is your health and your loved ones.
I don’t own a television and a lot of times, I miss things happening in the world. I am not proud of this and It’s not a disinterest in the world, I just don’t like submitting myself to this fear driven news reporting; it’s just too much sometimes for me. Free daily newspapers on the tube I find are too trashy featuring tabloid news and on top of that, mostly filled with fear creating stories of deaths, rapes and disasters. I don’t feel that political views are subjectively reported and so I just don’t follow. With politics I also lacked interest and failed to inform myself up until a week ago. I was at a dinner with friends and met a friend of theirs, a banker, who of course upon hearing I was Greek preceded to ask me what I thought would happen in Greece. I had no idea of the referendum as I had not informed myself. The next day, I was driven by a strong desire to get informed; and I did. I spent hours that day, and hours every day since, reading posts and articles on this situation, posts on blogs, posts of friends and strangers on facebook and on news reporting websites, and speaking to people I know had a good political or economic knowledge. I wanted to know and I wanted to understand.
Today is a big day for my country. I wish I was there to contribute with my vote but for the last 3 years I live in London. I guess I gave up on my country three years ago as I knew that I could not follow my dream there. Like I said, I wanted to be like my father and have a career like his, and like my father, I knew that to do that, I had to leave Greece. Many lately have said to me that I did well as yes, for my career and future it seems to have been a good decision. It does not make me happy however, as I know I speak for every Greek forced to become an immigrant that there is no place like home. I am Greek and I always will be. And I always will be proud to be Greek. No one will ever take that away from me. My country is beautiful and my people, when they are loving, are welcoming and warm and loud and passionate and radiate. The sun, the sea, the Greek food and temperament and the Greek family bond will always be in my heart.
Today we Greeks will vote.
I personally, in my humble opinion formed from the extensive examining of materials available on the internet, believe that we should say no. And going back to Ohi Day, the date I was born on, remembering that over 70 years ago, us Greeks once before stood up and said no and fought for our right to freedom.
I believe there should be a united Europe but a Europe with such an imbalance between its countries is not in my opinion united. United to me, means to support each other, and not nail each other down into the ground. We say that Greeks are at each other’s throats but does it not feel that this Europe is the same? I do not want Greece out of Europe or out of the euro but it is my understanding that even if that were to happen, even if we return to the drachma, we have a chance, yes in many years to restructure our economy. Saying yes, seems like saying yes to a situation we know doesn’t work. To a situation that will bring my people to their knees. And saying yes out of fear is simply something I refuse to do.
All I wish is that we consider Greece’s best interest. I wish that Greeks unite with love to fight for their right to a life. Old people deserve to enjoy their old age with the pension they have earned, young people have a right to dream. We have been robbed of our simple human rights to living and this has to stop. I do not care to argue left or right wing, I care for a better Greece, a united Greece, one where we all take responsibility together for our country, where we care about our neighbour and where we all pay all our taxes.
I am not religious, but the last week, I have been praying that "God" takes care of our Greece and that my people vote with the best interest of our country.
I say OXI.
No to bowing my head low, no to hatred and anger, no to a broken Greece, no to more unemployment and reduced pensions, and no to corruption. May today yield the best result for my country and my people.
Greece, I love you.
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