Things We Carry on the Sea by Wang Ping – 1957 We carry tears in our eyes: good-bye father, good-bye mother We carry soil in small bags: may home never fade in our hearts We carry names, stories, memories of our villages, fields, boats We carry scars from proxy wars of greed We carry carnage of mining, droughts, floods, genocides We carry dust of our families and neighbors incinerated in mushroom clouds We carry our islands sinking under the sea We carry our hands, feet, bones, hearts and best minds for a new life We carry diplomas: medicine, engineer, nurse, education, math, poetry, ev ..read more

“The imagination is one of the highest prerogatives of man. By this faculty he unites former images and ideas, independently of the will, and thus creates brilliant and novel results” Charles Darwin Image by Angelo Gargano It is well known that humans are terrified of unknown. This incertitude not only unleashes your imagination, but it also radicalizes your mind pushing you to take actions that you wouldn’t have considered otherwise. The speculations scare you more than the actual, while the media is staging an untouchable, undebatable and supreme crisis. So, you are trapped, confined, you ..read more

Image source: shutterstock The virus outbreak that emerged in Wuhan, China created a global emergency in front of which, as some might expect, the states were not prepared. With media’s reports and WHO declaring the rapidly spreading virus a pandemic, the people developed an overwhelming feeling of panic through social contagion.  From negation to anxiety and fear, the situation is rapidly changing as the states are taking extreme measures to contain the virus. So, what can be learnt so far from watching, listening to, and witnessing this crisis?  Learning solidarity through deeper ..read more

The open borders have given us the opportunity to study, travel and settle anywhere within the European Union, a privilege that our parents dreamed and fought for. Now, we are certainly living different times, but while we are enjoying all these rights, we are also facing heavier burdens, responsibilities and challenges such as coping with irregular employment. Image source: Tomi Ungerer Collection, Ireland, courtesy of the Drawing Center  On one hand, the cultural diversity of cities intrigued us, yet on the other we become more competitive and forced to adapt to an unfamiliar syste ..read more

Image source: Medscape.com Going through COVID-19 pandemic surely will have a lasting impact in every aspect of our life. The worrying headlines with their terrifying numbers; The world leaders’ statements that makes you think you are fighting a war; All other crimes that apparently ceased to exist; Doesn’t all these make you wonder if there is more to it than you can perceive right now? Or at least, doesn’t it make you stop for a moment to question what you see around? Recently someone reminded me of a poem by Rudyard Kipling called ‘I Keep Six Honest Serving Men’. It made ..read more

There is no doubt that migration can be a wonderful experience. It enriches our knowledge, makes us culturally aware, empathetic towards different communities and consequently grows us into better selves.  But while one can build magnificent memories at the opportunity of traveling the world, for the others migration arises as a forced instrument due to dramatic changes in the political and economic system or, as an outcome of conflict and wars. Whatever the reasons are, as per UNFPA 244 million people live today outside of their country of origin. Image: ©2015  – All  Ri ..read more

Tibetan National Flag The Old Man and the Evening Sun  by Kunga Rinchen It was a rainy day  I went by the narrow way The sun had nearly set The ground was still wet There was an old man Who lost interest To see the sunset I asked him once Where are you looking at He answered me I am looking at the east But the horizon is foggy And my vision is blurry I asked him once more Why you looking at the east Since the sun is setting west Which is not last any more He was trying to tell me something But he was crying saying nothing My heart was crying loudly But I smiled him ruefully T ..read more

Image source: medievaljourney.com We were seven, from different corners of the world, gathered by dreams in the same workplace. So young and unexperienced, naïve to many extents, yet determined and cheerful. Long working hours, six days a week, commuting between two cities, often saw us exhausted without much power left end of the day. But we were united, and to what we knew – supportive, after all, we were all sailing the same boat.  It took us time to stop quivering at every post on Facebook from the ones back home, from wondering if we took the right decision and if it will be worth t ..read more

GO MOTHER, I PROMISE I WILL TAKE CARE OF EVERYTHING! Image: ©1982  – All Rights Reserved …said the Romanian girl with the newly received ID in her hand as she just turned fourteen.  Weeping slowly the mother failed once again to cover her sorrow; she was looking at her still freezing hands that started to pus after so many icy-cold evenings at that café where she worked as an accounted also. She struggled so hard to provide her house, searching for motivation in the smallest things, like the gas supply for the old lamp used for lighting up the modest apartment during electrici ..read more

Image: ©2016  – All Rights Reserved The democratization processes during the Arab Spring brought with them the biggest migration crisis in Europe. Unprepared for such events, the EU continue to fail on its assimilation, integration and ultimately de-radicalization policies. This can be understandable in a way, given the fact that none of these countries were ever involved in offering a smoother transition to their migrants, nor had they interest in this regard.  The economic migrants that settled in a foreign country prior to that succeeded, or not, partly due to the cultural s ..read more