Learning life the Greek way.

If you have ever travelled throughout Greece you will learn that the locals live their lives based on principles that go back to Ancient Greece.  Principles that emphasise the importance of connections to your family, friends and your neighbours, where service to others is the richest personal reward.

I happened to be in Greece during the height of the economic crisis, when there was so much anxiety as they waited to see the outcome of their referendum. Although the financial impact and uncertainty put the Greeks under immense stress, the aforementioned principals became the way forward to most. 

And this was demonstrated for the world to see on the Island of Lesvos, during the height of the economic crisis when thousands of refugees from Syria crossed the borders through Turkey. When Greeks had nothing to give, the villages feed the destitute refugees and the local fisherman rescued those who braved the waters and almost drowned.

I am married to a Greek Australian and I have seen first hand the traditions and culture. I also have been fortunate to have travelled to some of the most incredible locations throughout the Mediterranean. Knowing what I know about the Greeks has enabled me to get the most out of my time there, as I have made incredible connections with the locals and met some truly wonderful people.

As a tourists it also has many advantages, as you are always offered more. More travel tips, a beach that isn't well known, or a village worth exploring. Definitely a recommendation for food, a flask of complimentary Raki, leaning how to dance the Zorba and so on.

The more time you spend on getting to know the locals the more that is open to you. This isn't just because you are a tourist. It is because of a beautiful concept the Greeks have called Philotimo.

The word comes from the Greek root words “filos”, meaning friend, and “timi”, meaning honour. 

Philotimo extends far beyond the words friend and honour. It’s difficult to translate or describe what philotimo means. It’s a Greek word without a proper definition. It encompasses the concepts of pride in self, pride in family, pride in community and doing the right thing. It’s a behaviour and without experiencing it can be hard to understand. Philotimo gives a meaning to life that stretches beyond ourselves. It’s an awareness in the heart that motivates the good deeds that a person does.

 Philotimo - A Word without Borders

"There is no word in the English language for the random moments that give birth to eternal questions. No word for the deep awareness and desire to do good, and demand so from others.

There is no word in the English language that blends the sense of individual purpose with the certainty that life is held in common. There is no word for doing your work with pride while you expect no reward, or when you’ll always do more than is expected of you, when recognised just once for what you did. No word for standing up to fear and still brave the day with humbleness that outlasts all hardship. No word for what makes you stand up and fight when you could have just gone gently into the night.

There is no word in the English language to describe love of honour or the honour of love, and the tragic void of one without the other. There is no word that measures friendship in a stranger, or for the comfort that fills the empty moments you hold with people you trust.  There’s no word to say you’re sorry that matters more than making up for it. No word to measure virtue, against its own reward. No word for that space between your freedom and mine, neither for the power of duty to give one’s up for the sake of another’s, none too for the half-heard cry of liberty growing in the stillness between two waves of the sea. There is no word to describe the art of unwrapping the gift of life in the present. No word for the need to live in a better world! "

Here is a link to a great video by the Washington Oxi Day Foundation that can give you more context of Philotimo.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aXPJNDVfBgU