Category: Bridge in it

From Brazil to Switzerland: Redefining My Roots

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On 24/05/2024

In Bridge in it, In English

If I die today, how many people would attend my funeral after a decade of living as an immigrant in Switzerland?

I know it’s a silly question, but it was an intriguing thought I had some months before deciding whether to celebrate my 40th birthday in Switzerland or not. After a decade abroad, my identity has changed in so many ways that I felt somehow “homeless,” struggling to piece together who I am.

I never imagined how therapeutic a birthday party could be in this sense. Thanks to my lovely wife, we managed to gather in the same space all the dimensions of my “new life” that I was hesitant to accept as the pillars of who I am today. I always felt loved by my Swiss family and friends, appreciated by colleagues, but when compared to the intensity of relationships I had in Brazil, it always seemed insufficient.

At 40th birthday celebration, I could see, feel, and hear the fruits of these last ten years of relationships. It changed me forever.

Visualizing all the meaningful relationships and deep connections I have in Switzerland freed me from the inner prisons of my past and brought me to an acceptance of my new self, full of richness, joy, and, most importantly, new roots.

Two weeks later, I went to Brazil with my family. 

Since moving to Switzerland on April 1, 2014, every time I returned to my home country, I tried to renew the connections externally and internally with everything and everyone I left behind. That protected my mental health, gave me the certainty of being rooted, and the serenity of feeling I had everything I needed.

This year, going back to Brazil wasn’t going back home anymore—maybe for the first time. After experiencing that special moment with my Swiss connections, I saw a whole new world I hadn’t seen before. 

Brazil then became a place to build something new with the same people I am delighted to meet. I could now share the best of who I am—a Brazilian Swiss, enriched by my integration efforts, struggles and experiences, and the joy and openness of my Brazilian heritage.

What a joy! What a wonderful and life-changing experience! I look forward to deepening it and learning how to make the best of this journey for myself and others.

The key day for Brazilian democracy

By

On 28/10/2018

In Bridge in it

It has been more than six months that I’m struggling to write down my feelings about the election process in my home country. Since 2014, it seems that powerful voices are trying to divide Brazil, promoting dilemma as the only alternative for voters. But none of the mainstream parties, who played the hero and villain game, have imagined that things would go as crazy as they are right now, finishing by creating the Brazilian version of Trump or Maduro.

Regardless of the result today, unfortunately the Brazilian democracy has already lost too much. Maybe the process is legit because people are still voting to decide who will be the Brazilian leader. However, the division, violence and absence of respectful dialogue between citizens show how far we are from a positive methodology to solve our national issues.

I understand the delusion towards the Labour Party. I am one of those who feel betrayed by their good political marketing combined with the absence of structural solutions for the vulnerable people. However, it would be a great mistake to believe that we can change the course of a nation by force, as Jair Bolsonaro proposes. It would reduce politics to a bunch of superficial solutions instead of recognising that societies are complex and in need of a fair compromise between different interests.

Democracy must be an inclusive project that puts everyone at the same table, towards the utopia of the common good. And the power of voting carries the individual responsibility concerning the society each one of us want to live in, even when the alternatives are limited.

Back to humanity

By

On 17/09/2018

In Bridge in it

Violations of human rights, ultra-conservative parties rising into power, inequality and the extreme individualism that triggers the loss of common references: Many people might agree that this is a pretty realistic view of what is happening in the world right now. I must admit that often when I am reading the news, I feel hopeless about humanity.

When people ask me what I do, I am proud to answer that I use my skills to promote Humanity. It could be enough to just live a decent and honest life, find my happiness, but I always feel that I should do more.

Some weeks ago, I started to reflect and review my convictions. Are my actions coherent with my beliefs? Am I doing things just for habit or because they fit my routine? If Love is the power that drives me, why am I accepting to live a meaningless life to remain comfortable? Answering these questions made me understand that it was time for me to change.

When you understand that altruistic love feeds happiness, it is hard to be satisfied. It seems impossible to believe that achieving socioeconomic self-sufficiency is the end of the game. Life cannot finish with people looking in the mirror.

Embracing humanity seems the only way to overcome the emptiness of individualism. Empathy helps to keep us united. It makes us family, despite personal stories and beliefs. We need to elevate Creation to an unnegotiable status that encourages us to look more at each other and to make impactful decisions, especially in favour of those in vulnerable conditions.

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