Sunday Morning Thoughts – October 6, 2024

Not enough hours in a day … so many thoughts

Yesterday I was going to go on a long hike, but when I woke up at 5.30, I realized that wasn’t gonna happen. Still not back to 100% after being off work sick. And a 4-hour hike in the Swiss Alps just didn’t feel like a good idea. Also, it had rained all week. I’m dying to get back out there but my doctor was right – patience, there’s no prescription drugs for it.

So, I started looking into the history of the Swiss Army Knife. Fascinating stuff. If I can sit still long enough to finally get that newsletter published today, I will. No promises though. If anybody else has a reader request as to what I should write about, let me know. I just might do it.

I had bookmarked a few things for that newsletter and while I don’t usually include sources in my Sunday Morning Thoughts, this is something I want more people to know. It has nothing to do with knives but with the vocational training in Switzerland. I’m just going to quote an entire section because I couldn’t say it better myself. Here’s where I found it: Education in Switzerland. I made a few changes in the second paragraph.

              Vocational education and training

The consistently low unemployment rate in the Swiss labor market is due not only to a stable national economy but also to the quality of the Swiss vocational education and training system, which is considered the best in the world.

Vocational education and training begins at the end of compulsory schooling. More than three-quarters of [the] young people [who] do an apprenticeship [and] receive a school education at the same time. This apprenticeship, which lasts three to four years, includes a practical part, work in a company, and a theoretical part with courses related to the chosen branch.

The dual system of vocational education and training is a real asset for the Swiss economy. It allows for the training of well-prepared practitioners who are ready to be hired. As a result, the unemployment rate of young people in Switzerland is significantly lower than the average of European countries.

Whereas trade school is something “bad” in other countries, it’s part of Switzerland’s success story. Only like a quarter of students go on with traditional schooling after nine years and then possibly on to university. It’s difficult for people who didn’t grow up with it to understand.

Basically, around the age of 14 you decide what field you want to train in. For some people it’s clear right away – others might choose a job or field where they have a lot of options. One such example is a commercial apprenticeship.

What is really cool about our vocational training is that what you learn at school is related to your job. Okay, you do have some subjects that everybody has like German, Math and some general knowledge classes, but a hairdresser will learn about chemicals and an electrician about electric currents. It just makes a lot of sense to me.

Have I mentioned that I’m running out of wall space to hang pictures? I should start selling them, but I do like the vibe in my apartment now that they are all hanging on the walls. Something to figure out.

Hmmm, I also have an unfinished newsletter on shame – yes, again. It’s an incredibly big topic and an important one. So, I might finish that one today as well. Now, I’m looking at a painting that I used as a cover picture on here a few weeks back. A friend told me yesterday that it reminded them of Monet’s water lilies. High compliment. I’ll take it. Then there were a few very positive comments regarding my book – still working on dealing with those. And by saying “dealing” instead of “accepting” or “appreciating” I just admitted that it’s not easy for me.

I mean hearing people say that on some topics they wanted to know so much more or that they are giving my book to a friend for Christmas - feels really good. Also, everybody seems to read it twice. I guess that’s a good thing too. Getting all emotional typing this.

And B R E A T H E!

Yesterday I figured out that it is between 900 and 1000 steps from my front door to the grocery store. My phone counted them but it’s unclear when me walking around inside the store started, so I’m totally counting the steps myself next time. I could also just go with an average of 950 steps each way. I’ll keep you posted.

Thursday was a tough day. I got on the train as normal and then it suddenly stopped in the middle of a tunnel. We later learned that the train ahead of ours was involved in an accident (suicide). There’s a standard operating procedure where no trains are running past the scene of the accident for quite some time. Since it had only just happened there was no bus replacement service yet. It also happened in the middle of morning rush hour on the main train artery of Switzerland. I’m assuming that there were not many buses and/or bus drivers available. Not easy.

Once we found out why there was a delay, I didn’t hear any complaints. It was like everybody understood that in cases like these there is nothing the train company can do. I do get emotional when I hear that somebody didn’t see another way out – for obvious reasons. Read my book, you’ll understand. Getting goose bumps now thinking about it.

Fast forward to the train ride home. We’re stopped at a regular stop and suddenly there is police. They are looking for a couple of people. Eventually they find them and take them away. Seriously, stuff like that doesn’t happen around here. Anyway, they were not dangerous, there were no weapons – just some running and shouting on the train.

What a day Thursday was.

It also brought back the fact that whatever you’re healing from, there’s always a scar. Some are visible, some are invisible. The goal is to heal as much as possible. And to heal means to feel – honestly feel. Acknowledging the hurt, the pain, the wound. That’s a difficult start. And it gets even harder after that.

You know the toxic positivity folk who tell you to just make sure all other areas of your life are good and to work on those. Right. If you break your leg, you can get over that by really looking after your arms, your abs, getting a new haircut and a manicure. Makes perfect sense. People sometimes get it when you put it like this. Not always. To me it’s just too harmful an approach to not call it out time and time again.

Just as a broken leg won’t heal itself, trauma won’t either. Ignoring the feelings and pushing them down, not wanting to feel that way ... Short term relief – yes. Long term solution – hell no! I learned that the hard way.

Society hasn’t learned it yet. We’re still told to leave the past behind and move on. Or to “just think positive”. Somehow all this pops into my head when I hear about a suicide. It’s all just a little bit more complicated than that.

Gosh, I have so many thoughts today. Another one is that after 9/11 everybody said “we won’t let THEM take away our freedom and our democracy – we have to fight for it” or something to that effect. Just a bit confused as to what’s happening now. Democracy is under threat as are some of the most fundamental rights. And it’s not a threat from abroad – it’s very much one from within. This is scary. Very scary.

And it’s one of the reasons why I’m staying in Europe this December. I don’t trust the democratic process in the US. I really don’t. It’s gonna be absolute chaos if one candidate wins and bad for the entire world, but if the other one wins things could get really dicey – again. I’ll be in Norway eating waffles under the Northern lights. Feels safer to me.

I don’t want to end on that note … Trying to think of something fun. I’m having raclette with pineapple today. Yummy! Not fun, but divine. I got some garlic raclette cheese. It’s the absolute best. And I’m not planning on kissing anybody today – so I can have all the garlic I want.

Vandalism or art? I have a question for you. Would you consider this vandalism or art? A local artist puts little animals on official hiking signs. I just spotted a new one this week. They added a dog. Made me smile. So, while the hiking authorities might not be thrilled with this – in fact I know they aren’t, nobody is fighting to have the animals removed. Just a bit of fun. Just something to make people smile. Do you agree?

That’s the sign and I’m using another picture from the same walk as my cover picture. Unless I forget.

Have a lovely Sunday everyone.