The german language has a word for the state of living that lacks as so in a modern, rushed society. It’s a word we can learn a lot from, even though we didn’t know it before.
This word is a wonderful mixture of feelings that when you find a way to describe them, they make sense all together. Someone tried to translate it as “cordiality“, but it’s way more than that. There is not an exact translation in English, but a definition that comes pretty close goes like this.
Gemütlichkeit is a situation that induces a cheerful mood, peace of mind, with a connotation of belonging and social acceptance, coziness and unhurry. This kind of situation is the one you find yourself when in a comfortable couch, having a hot chocolate with good friends, listening to good music. Imagine yourself in such a situation and this feeling that starts warming up inside, that exaclty is gemütlichkeit.
Ιt is also a situation hard to impose in your life, if you are leading it in the classic, always on the move, strained and anxious way of living in a modern society. But there are ways to get closer to it.
First, try to tackle social isolation. Feeling lonely isn’t just a feeling blue kind of phase. It’s is a real life problem of too many people living in big cities, and it is something that seriously hurts their psychology. Second, think about getting in that situatiion and this is how you will make it happen -like preparing the ingredients of a good soup. And third, pay attention to the “unhurried” part! It is the most importand.
By Jonah Winter, Truth Inside of You.
