“If a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less.” One of the most famous and internationally venerated British poets, John Donne, centuries ago expressed this simple truth of our unity with “the continent, part of the main”. Sadly many of his countrymen either never appreciated it or have recently forgotten how much we are all related and how immensely we benefit from this relationship. Because of them, the UK has left Europe and “Europe is the less” now. Europe – including myself, my husband and all those Brits identifying as Europeans – will be mourning Britain, an island being “washed away by the sea”…Whereas on a personal level we, probably, would not experience much change – after all, even the complicated visa process and other multiple restrictions did not prevent me, a Soviet-born woman, from studying abroad, traveling round the planet, working in multinational companies, bringing up my children as citizens of the world. Where there is a will there’s a way. And yet I feel very sad and the feeling is very similar to the sadness I felt 20 odd years ago when I first came to the UK as a student. At that time I was offered a part-time job that other teachers of the 6th form local college in a North East English town were quite reluctant to do. Would I like to teach a module in a business and administration vocational course called “Living and Working in Europe”? I’d loved to do it! Absolutely delighted for lots of reasons! Later I was really astonished to discover that my sincere enthusiasm and joy of explaining what wonderful opportunities they all had in the whole of Europe as of right would face a cold wall of indifference from my students. Guys, you are just a couple of years younger than me. Wouldn’t you dream of having the whole of Europe as your home? Working, living and learning, enjoying the mix of incredible cultures, languages, cuisines, approaches, attitudes? Coming there not as a guest having to ask permission from the host for every action but as an equal in rights owner of the place? They started at me: why would we want to do that? What’s wrong with our village?The gap between our understanding of the world, our hopes and expectations was too big, I guess. Some years later I was working in Moscow for a multinational company. Most of my college students probably stayed in the North East and happily voted for Brexit several decades later. I did not do a good job of explaining to them why they really needed Europe and how they all benefited. Neither myself nor other teachers managed to explain that even if they did not ever move anywhere outside their beautiful home village, they would still benefit from the union with Europe. Europe moved to them, bringing diversity, different cultures and views, challenging old ways – pushing, tempting, arguing, competing. Everyone who moved to a different country at least once – not as a tourist but to live – knows that it may be exciting but at the same time difficult, confusing and even scary. It is the wrong strategy to deny the fears and difficulties of adaptation to new ways of living. They do exist. They are real. However, it is a great mistake to focus on them and not to notice the joys and benefits. And we made this mistake. No one helped those students to appreciate and consciously enjoy the positive change brought to everyone by a more united Europe. So they did not notice it and, probably, will not miss it.Our universes remain separate – those who want to be European and those who identify exclusively as Brits may live on the same small island but still be worlds apart. We had a chance to get closer and be united at least to some extent, We did not use it. It is not the European Union that we lost, but a good chance for our own united kingdom.Therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls – it tolls for thee…
Blog written by Tanya Khandurova