Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Sisu, In All Its Forms

 
Sisu is an unique Finnish concept. It's hard to translate it into one word: "perserverance" doesn't quite cover it all, "stubborness" is too radical because it implies a bloody-minded lack of thought, "determination" is pretty close but doesn't really include the reflective portion of the concept, an almost-zen moment of overcoming that last hesitation...or not.
 
It's literal translation is "having guts". It's courage of concept, in other words.
 
Earlier this week, I mentioned how Finland might be the spanard in the works for the reconciliation of the European Union's economic disparities: Greece, Ireland, Spain, Portugal and Italy and their flailing economies versus, well, the rest of the EU. The True Finns party won a surprising number of parliamentary seats, and could have put a damper on Finland's participation in any bailout (thus effectively ending the bailout).
 
Well, I'm pleased to say, sisu prevailed.