Greece — The Country of Complainers
Sometimes gratefulness is all we need
We are a nation of complainers. Everything is our fault, and nothing satisfies us. Every day we grumble incessantly about traffic, the ridiculous state, the invisible police force, the high cost of food, the salaries that don’t cover the month, the boss who constantly demands more work, strikes for trivial reasons, the mindless people around us who keep multiplying, life passing by and being wasted.
Greek reality is difficult, with the pressure to survive fluctuating according to international and national scenes. Yet, if we consider how billions of souls live on this planet and compare them to us, this complaining might become arrogance. It’s not wrong to feel grateful sometimes. I once read about an Indian chief editor of a small newspaper in New Delhi, who, whenever he heard Europeans complaining, would say with a certain wisdom and sternness: “You have luxury problems. As long as drinkable water runs in the tap of your house, you’re not entitled to complain”.
I don’t advocate stepping into the shoes of the war-torn people around us — the Ukrainians, Russians, Israelis, or Palestinians in Gaza. But imagine being born in one of the roughly 150 countries in impoverished Africa, the Middle East, Asia, or Latin America. Life would be an immense uphill battle.
Greece remains one of the most privileged places on the planet. As a member of the EU’s affluent club for four decades, it’s now an exemplary model. Emerging battered and poor from World War II, enduring ‘stone’ years, divisions, dictatorships, and deprivation. But it has since made a tremendous leap. It’s a country with democracy and freedom. A nation with education for all, healthcare even for the poorest, a social state for the vulnerable, and pensions for the elderly. 7 out of 10 Greeks own their homes and 5 out of 10 have secondary residences with 40,000 young men and women studying abroad and multiple Greeks excelling worldwide in sciences, businesses, sports, and the arts.
And most importantly, Greece stands out because it is a country with incredible beauty, a unique climate, and an ancient civilization. Greece is paradise. Its waters are wonderful and safe, they don’t bite. The land is welcoming. The air is friendly. The people are amazing and they love their family.
This transformation of Greece took place in the last 50 years. My grandmother, who was born and raised in Vanari, a village in Karditsa, every time she heard someone complaining, she raised her voice. She reminded the loud ones that when she was still going to school in the 70s in her village, there was no electricity or telephone, and the roads were unpaved paths without a trace of asphalt. If you fell seriously ill, it was a miracle to reach the nearest hospital. Just as it was in most remote areas of the country, in the islands along the barren line, where you searched for a doctor with binoculars.
Even in Athens, at that time, owning a car was an unreachable dream for the average family, and you needed quite a bit of money even to have a telephone line. The country’s infrastructure was practically non-existent. It took at least 7 hours to get to Ioannina, and in many small islands, there weren’t even ports big enough for the regular ships to dock — tourists would disembark onto the land using small boats.
So let’s look at the reality around us. And let’s stop complaining, as tough as the days may be. Problems exist in Greece. Bureaucracy, corruption, incompetence. Public servants who torment us and politicians who care only for themselves. Scoundrels and various unlikely characters overflowing with narcissism, and they are so poor that their only wealth is their money. Greece, however, is steadily moving forward. And it remains a blessed country. And all of us who live in this amazing corner of the planet remain among the luckiest people in the world.
