I quit watching the news for almost two months and finally managed to disable the Google News widget and all news-related notifications on my phone. What a freedom! This habit brought clear improvements in my mood. I felt happier, more energetic, and noticed far more positivity in myself than before. From time to time, a nagging fear of missing out still appears — surely something important must be happening in the world that I do not hear about? Even so, for my mental health, I found it better not to follow the news at all. Today, however, my eyes caught a headline while I was browsing online. I briefly read the article because it was about a bank I used to work for. That article triggered an interesting point of view, which I am sharing with you now.
A Wider Perspective Through Travel
Travelling across multiple continents and countries gives you memories and new experiences. Over time, you start to see the world not just from a small cube, but from a wide-angle perspective. When you live in a wealthy country, where the government does not let you starve or become homeless because of the benefit system, your problems look very different from those in the rest of the world. Life becomes filled with smaller frustrations. You complain about the weather, you cannot find the perfect plot to build your new house, the PS4 games you own start to feel boring, and the fifteenth expensive wristwatch no longer brings joy. Even a one-day delay in Amazon delivery or a temporary banking issue can feel like a serious inconvenience.
“An Absolute Nightmare” — Or Is It?
‘An absolute nightmare’ was the title of the article that caught my eye. As I lived in England for ten years, I fully understand how frustrating it can be when card payments do not work in a grocery store. I have lived through these situations myself. I worked at banks where even a 15-minute outage caused stress and required explanations to managers about why maintenance work took longer than expected. At that time, I was also a heavy consumer. I shopped frequently online and in retail stores. Back then, I believed the worst possible scenario was a full-day banking outage. That belief changed after visiting Paraguay, Brazil, and Mexico and seeing poverty with my own eyes.
When Reality Redefines “Bad”
In these countries, poverty leaves many people helpless in their daily lives. Many work in low-paying jobs or cannot find work at all. Some are too ill or disabled to earn a living. Others are elderly, widowed, or living alone and cannot support themselves or their children. I saw five-year-old children walking between cars on busy roads, selling fruit just to survive. I saw mothers with children living on dirty pavements in conditions worse than many dogs. In São Paulo, I witnessed countless homeless people and prostitutes. In Mexico and Paraguay I experienced life without electricity and tap water for 24 hours and longer. All of this completely changed what I consider “bad.”
What a Real Nightmare Looks Like
After such experiences, not being able to pay by card for one day no longer feels like a major problem. In many parts of the world, millions of children still die from hunger or contaminated water. In these places, life depends entirely on money. Without it, people do not receive medical treatment, life-saving medicines, or government support. They are completely alone. This reality is terrifying. Today, I again imagined what these people feel every day while fighting for survival. A true “absolute nightmare” is lying ill on the street with nothing to eat and no future ahead.
In our comfortable lives in well-developed countries, we often forget how lucky we are. We already have everything needed for an excellent life. What is often missing is gratitude. Patience with each other is missing too. Even patience with the technology that makes our lives incredibly easy is something we tend to lose.
A Reminder Worth Carrying
I would recommend that residents of wealthy countries travel to poorer regions whenever possible. For now, this blog post serves as a reminder: that 21st Century problem you face today may be a fortune, even a gift from God, in another – not that developed – country. Remember this the next time you feel that your worst nightmare is not being able to go shopping for one day.
