The Cavalier Daily
Serving the University Community Since 1890

A European value

For the first several weeks of my stay in Lyon, Sundays were the dreaded day. In France, everything is closed on Sundays. Everything. Aside from my gym opening — thank you! — from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., there is absolutely nothing to do, besides being inside my apartment or maybe going to the park, which it’s too cold for now, or walking a dog, which I don’t have. The streets are deserted. It really feels as if there was a massive citywide exodus of which we Americans weren’t informed.

With the grocery store just a block away, my roommates and I keep little besides breakfast foods around and make a stop to the grocery store each afternoon for supplies to make dinner that night. We don’t plan in advance; we just buy what we’re craving. Buying small makes sense anyway, because we do tend to eat a lot and more than one day’s supply would be too much for one person to carry.

The girls and I got used to this routine, but every week, on the Sabbath day, we faced a dilemma we still have not learned from, which results in us eating leftovers, pasta, old vegetables, cereal, eggs and yogurt all day long.

It’s funny, because this cultural quirk aligns perfectly with the reasons for which I think some Americans, like myself, envy Europeans. It’s characteristic of the European dedication to time away from the workplace, their value of culture over capital and their recognition of the need for a break.

Yet despite my understanding of this culture, I still couldn’t help feeling vexed and desperate when I could find nothing to eat on Sundays.

From an insider’s point of view, like you, reading this now, and me, a month ago, it makes perfect sense for stores to be open like they are in the United States. American shoppers in France are frequently turned down because of early hours or contend with shops closing for a two-hour lunch period. I asked myself: Why isn’t there a restaurant owner who recognizes how much money he could make if he opened on Sundays? He would be the only one! I wondered why all restaurants stopped serving between the hours of 2:30 p.m. and 6 p.m. when there are so many people who would like to be served between those hours.

As time has gone on, and I’ve gotten more used to the different hours, I’ve learned it’s quite a beautiful thing. I’m now learning how to realign my own life to adopt their habits. At the University, Sundays were a day to shop for groceries, clean up my apartment, do laundry and catch up on work. But after going, going and going for six days in a row, the least you can give yourself is a day, or even an afternoon, of recess. Curl up in bed. Spend time with your dog or roommate. Watch that movie that you keep meaning to, or read something besides your assigned texts.

Stereotypes become visible in the smallest of nuances. Many Europeans view the United States as an extreme capitalistic market. People work on the weekends and don’t travel often. Students go straight from high school to college to the workforce. There are monopolies in every market. And there are stores that stay open on holidays and late at night — and on Sundays.

The U.S. lives up to these stereotypes in many ways. But that’s not to say there is no value in that type of lifestyle: There’s success and there’s money, and that comes from the determination, persistence and hardworking attitudes of the U.S. population.

So before you criticize other people’s cultures as being lazy or impractical or disgusting, remember you can’t compare apples and oranges. You can’t judge someone’s activities and beliefs looking through a lens of your own culture. Recognize that each society has different values and practices that might never align with yours, but that doesn’t make them any less knowledgeable, happy or worthy.

Valerie’s column runs biweekly Tuesdays. She can be reached at v.clemens@cavalierdaily.com.

Comments

Latest Podcast

The University’s Associate Vice Provost for Enrollment and Undergraduate Admission, Greg Roberts, provides listeners with an insight into how the University conducts admissions and the legal subtleties regarding the possible end to the consideration of legacy status.



https://open.spotify.com/episode/02ZWcF1RlqBj7CXLfA49xt