Why Norway?
This is THE number 1 question I get from anyone who ever asks me anything about my life story. I I had to choose one word, that word would be “Happiness“. My personal experience with America and being American is that there isn’t any emphasis on being happy. Never does anyone say to you “What makes you happy?”. It’s always bigger, faster, and more money. I was so wrapped up in it all. I just wanted to be happy.
I love bartending. I enjoy serving people and seeing them smile. I enjoy making something for someone that they will like. I left the service industry to start selling cars why? More money for a bigger, nicer car. You get to be 30 and people start questioning why you work in a bar. “When are you gonna get a real job?” is a favorite. So you push for a job that makes more money, has benefits, and the works. How can you take care of a woman? A family? You ask yourself and get asked these questions.
I was in a relationship and was having a baby. After I made the move to car sales and was doing all of my paperwork I got to thinking. I had to do life insurance paperwork and was naming my girlfriend at the time and our baby 50/50 beneficiaries. That stuff will make you think about the future. The woman I was dating was a Norwegian American but she had never been to Norway. Both grandparents born in Norway came over and you get it. I had taken her to Mexico the year before for her birthday and I was wanting to take her to Norway for next birthday. Then our baby died and everything went downhill and our relationship did not make it and I started thinking more and more about my future. I wanted a family for sure, I knew that. I also wanted to see the world. I grabbed a map and begin to look at my choices.
London, Paris, Zurich, Prague, and Berlin. I looked at each of these major cities. I wanted to live
I abroad and I knew I wanted to live in Europe. Even though I had never been, I felt I was ready. I had lived and traveled all over the United States and I had been to Canada and Mexico and even went to the Caribbean in the Dominican Republic. I couldn’t afford to think in the mindset of the single man that I was. I had to think about the future. I said I wanted to have a family so I looked into things like crime rates, healthcare, and education. Will this future family I will have, and be the leader of, be safe? Healthcare benefits. Free healthcare isn’t free blah, blah, blah, I don’t mind paying extra taxes and paying into a system that provides healthcare for everyone when they need it. That’s just my personal opinion. So I wanted to go to a country that had universal healthcare. When I have that future family, of course I want the best for my children. I want them to be better than me. Luckily for them, I have set the bar very very low haha so it shouldn’t be too hard. I wanted to go to a country with free education. Not only for my children but for me too! I desperately want to finish university and give Ma Dukes my degree! Then I want to get a Masters! I’d like my children to be people of the world and be able to speak multiple languages. Basically what I want is no different than what any of you want. I want to be happy. I want a cozy family and I want . I want safety, healthcare, education, outdoors, and cold weather.
Norway was all of these things. Google “Happiest country in the world”, it’s a rotating list of Nordic countries. Well, in 2017 number 1 was Norway. When I did deeper research into the country, quality of life, the culture, and everything, I knew I had to live there. When I made it my intention, a lot of things started falling into place. Turns out that Norwegian is the easiest language for an American English speaker to learn. Well its a tie, Norwegian and Spanish. Norwegians are all taught English in school. British English which is NOT the same as American English haha but still. Then all the Scandinavian languages are very similar so knowing one kinda means knowing all three. One time in Jerusalem, I was eating at an Ethiopian restaurant and next to me was a guy and a girl talking. One was speaking Danish and the other responding in Norwegian. Without even trying thats 4 languages. Now you get to high school and Norwegian is a North Germanic language so German is easier to pick up! Then you go to University and its free through your Master’s degree. No matter how you slice it, a person who speaks 5 languages and has a Masters degree has an advantage in life. I would love to have those advantages in my life for myself and my loved ones. And all of you too! Let’s get it! The only problem was that I had never been there!
The American Dream is dead. There are many countries that offer better benefits for their citizens than the United States. For a better life, I have no problem learning a new language and customs. For a better future, I have no problem making 14 hour flights across the globe. These are just my opinions concerning my own life. You will have to make your choices about whats best for you and your life. I’m American, so I know all about my country being a nation of immigrants. I know all about mass exodus of Europeans from Europe coming to America. Norwegians, Irish, Italian, Polish etc. They all came to the United States. Why? Why does anyone move to another country? Why does anyone move anywhere?? For a better life. When tens of thousands of foreigners came to the USA on Ellis Island in New York, they left their countries and got on a boat and traveled. Some of them had only the clothes on their back! They came to America with NOTHING and yet, it was still a better life. That’s what I wanted. That’s what I still want. It’s all I want
I packed my bags and I went to Norway. I was worried that I had built it up too much in my head, that I wouldn’t like Norway that much. Remember I had never been to Europe. I didn’t know anything about anything. I wondered how different it would be. I wondered if people would like me and if I would be every American stereotype they thought. What if I hated it? I figured that even if I hated it, that i would find a job and still stay a while because growth. Growth as a man and human on this earth. Do you know what happened instead? I LOVED Norway. I loved the culture. I love learning the language. The people of Norway and the different (to me) social norms. For the first time in a long time, I felt “Home”.
What a strange feeling it is to feel home in a place you’ve never been before. I hadn’t felt that way since Herndon, Virginia. It’s a calming very peaceful feeling. It feels like I’m on my path and this is just my own personal path. Your path will be different. That’s my why. What’s yours? Whatever it is, you have to see it through. If you don’t, you’ll regret it forever. When you do, your life will never be the same.
Norge for alltid.