Life /
Why are Poles always so miserable? Why do they never smile? [512]
jazzjack - not the genes but rather an influence of a particular culture/history/occurences. Poles for many centuries hardly had any reasons to be happy and satisfied with their lives. Long-lasting repressions and persecutions for almost the whole 19th and 20th century like the german-russian occupation during WW2, repressions and persecutions of Poles during the second half of the 20th, constant struggle with somebody just to keep the head under the water, just to survive. Now, it's over, but for many people any attempt to change their attitudes towards new reality is unbelievably hard. In my opinion it's very noticable especially when you look at some elder Poles (let's say 40 or more) - they often are so pessimistic and worried about everything and everyone that it is sometimes hard to imagine, especially for a foreigner just like you.
Personally speaking, I'm a representative of a young generation of Poles - I'm 23 - and a bit experienced with life - have 2 kids, been married for 3 years, work as hard as I can, and know that sometimes life can kick you in the gut, but I move on.
And, as Jerry Springer would sum it up in his 'final thought' :)
Being happy and optimistic bloke certainly helps you with your life and the way how other people perceive you. Nevertheless if somebody doesn't want to smile or he/she simply cannot show their possitive emotions to others, it doesn't mean that they should be excluded from the rest of their society - maybe such way of existence is deeply rooted in their minds. Or maybe they are introverts and actually are on cloud 9
That's all folks - see you later !
