Why emmigrate?

 

I have recently travelled to my birthtown and had the chance to meet old friends and relatives that I have not seen in a long time. Most of them have stayed in Portugal most of their lives, while some emmigrated to other countries- They have moved mostly to other countries in Europe, due to the dire socioeconomical situation that Portugal has passed through the last decade. We met for a couple of social events and the reasons for emmigrating came up often as a conversation topic.

I knew beforehand that there is a big fraction of portuguese emmigrants (emmigrants, yes, I do not understand why some people prefer to classify themselves as ex-pats, as if the word immigrant is some sort of insult) to whom the main reason for migrating has to do with the improvement of work conditions or economical situation.

With the real danger of sounding pedantic or pretentious, I would say that probably one of my biggest personal motivations to emmigrate is the chance of being challenged and to be permanently forced to learn something new. I have seen and done things in the last twenty years that I most probably would not have the chance to do if I stayed in my birth country. Every day has its challenges: from having to switch between diferent languages to adapting to cultural or professional contexts on a daily basis. Life is hard(er), but it is good (better). All cultures are different, and I try to learn as much as possible about the ones that I am exposed to, and to use or adopt the best parts of them. Portuguese culture and life philosophy is a bit melancolic and poetic, but not the most effective, for example, while norwegian culture is more pragmatic and goal-oriented.

As I write this text, there is a political TV debate running on the background. One of the arguments I hear for reducing emmigration is increasing the average salaries. I would say that that is true for a fraction of the emmigrants, but not all. Others are drawn by a permanent feeling of fernweh (=longing for  travelling, in german) and innate curiosity for what’s out there. A sort of geographic FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out). Xenophiles. An army of wandering Forrest Gumps, more proud of a mind full of memories than a bank account full of euros.   

Living abroad is fun, (exactly) because it is challenging.