Warm Embraces

This past weekend, I had the opportunity to fulfill a lifelong dream: I got to visit the home town of a very close family friend called Bütschwil in the Swiss-German part of the country, about a 4-hour trip from where I stay. The scenery outside the train window was breath taking; rolling green hills spotted with small clusters of houses with smoking chimneys or with woody farm houses. Every so often, the train stopped in beautiful old towns with tightly packed colorful buildings that made me want to hop off the train and go exploring. My train ride took me along the coasts of Lake Geneva (known here as Lac Leman) and of Lac de Neuchâtel, which satisfied my constant pull to coastal areas. (Being by the water has always been very calming and comforting for me.) Unfortunately, much of my departing and retuning train rides took place after dark, but I got to see some charming scenery along the way. When I arrived in the small town, I was welcomed with hearty, warm hugs and the overwhelming feeling of belonging. Living in a homestay has certainly provided me with a sense of a home base here in Switzerland, but I have yet to fully feel as if it were truly my own home. When I arrived in Bütschwil, I was overwhelmed by the feeling that I was home. Of course I still felt like a guest and I could not understand a word of the local language, but I still could not wipe this large grin off my face the whole night. Throughout my time there, I was welcomed into people's homes without question, constantly offered wine, and I frequently chatted about my family and the pasts I shared with these people. To add to the magic, I was seeing people I hadn't seen in about 10 years or more and meeting other people who I had only ever seen pictures of. Since I was born I have heard stories of these people and places I was visiting and for the first time I was able to meet those people and walk those streets. While my weekend was not filled with eventful excursions, it was a weekend for a more personal journey.

I arrived later on Friday evening and was immediately served a delicious dinner, over which I was able to catch up with my generous hosts. On Saturday, I visited a tiny city called Lichtensteig. Here, I was able to visit the exact bakery where my family friend bought the famous biberlies that my brother and I devoured every time she brought them back for us. These Swiss-German pastries are composed of a sort of sandwich of gingerbread filled with a marzipan-like substance. Although for some it is an acquired taste, my brother and I absolutely adore them. My hostess kindly bought me a box of what I later discovered to be THIRTY biberlies!! The transaction happened very quickly and in Swiss-German so before I could process what was happening or offer paying, I had what felt like two pounds of pastry in my hands. When I got back to Founex Sunday night and tasted one, it was even more incredible than what I remembered. My mom pointed out that it is probably because I have never before had one so fresh. I spent the rest of my Saturday with the family I was visiting, playing children games and eating home made pizza. On Sunday I was generously invited to accompany everyone to the new baby's christening. Although I didn't understand a word of it, the ceremony was very endearing, particularly because each of the many cousins of the christened baby had a role to play in honoring their new cousin. Afterwards, we had a massive, delicious lunch altogether where I got to catch up with an old baby sitter who I had not seen in ages. Despite the language barrier, it was truly a wonderful afternoon.

I had quite an odd personal moment sitting in the christening ceremony were I thought about my recent studies and research on the relationship between religion and politics as well as my aspirations to ensure the availability of abortion services to women around the world, which often involves disagreements surrounding religion. Sitting in that pew, I thought about how much love filled the small chapel and how much religion can act as a facilitator of the warm embraces that the new baby was feeling as well as those I felt when I arrived. At the risk of sounding obnoxiously academic, this small realization reinforced my research from last semester, analyzing how religion should never be treated as detrimental, because even in contexts where religious principles can disagree with certain health rights for example, there can still be much to learn from religion. As an aspiring reproductive rights activist, it is crucial to not label religion as harmful or detrimental because really it is too subjective and so filled with love at its core. While I did not suddenly become religious this past weekend, I am grateful for these contemplations on religion and that I had a truly positive and uplifting religious experience (which this is not to say it was my first). (I think part of my reaction has to do with the fact that I could not understand any of the words; I was left to contemplate what they were saying and the deeper meanings at hand based on their body language and other visual cues.) Religion is a topic that is so often avoided due to its sensitivity, and, even though I myself hesitated to include this in my blog post, I think it is important to talk about. I cannot express how thankful I am for my hosts and their hospitality this past weekend, embracing my into their family. Thank you.

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