Bern, books, and by-the-way
Belonging
I’m a citizen of two countries, but I’ve never had to apply for naturalization. I acquired US citizenship when I was born and Swiss citizenship in 1988 when I married a Swiss. Becoming a Swiss isn’t normally so easy. In fact, even people who were born in Switzerland don’t get citizenship unless at least oneContinue reading “Belonging”
A Gripping Take on “The Troubles”
Like over fifty million American adults, I have Irish ancestors, although I have to go back to my great-great-grandfather and -grandmother to find anyone actually born on Irish soil. I was also an adult during most of The Troubles, the years from 1968 until 1998 when Northern Ireland was a battleground between the (essentially Protestant)Continue reading “A Gripping Take on “The Troubles””
Emotion Work
I’m back in Bern after thirty days in the US. With my nephew getting married in Napa Valley, my husband and I decided to drive from Vancouver, BC, where I did my last two years of high school, to Calistoga, CA, via Washington, Oregon, and the northern Californian coast. It was a great trip thatContinue reading “Emotion Work”
Teacup or Water Glass?
I was playing tennis with a Swiss friend recently, and the third time I dropped the ball I said, in German, “I can’t believe I’m such a butterfingers today.” It’s almost the same word in German as in English, even if the vowels are pronounced differently: Butterfinger. Except that it doesn’t exist in German, soContinue reading “Teacup or Water Glass?”
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Kim Hays 