As a Quebecer residing in Kongsberg, Norway, for five years now, the events that happened this week bring back bad memories to me, in addition to arousing disbelief and incomprehension.
How can such a tragic event occur in such a peaceful “kommune” (municipality), where all needs are met? In a country where everyone does their “dugnad” (voluntary work) at school, in sports, or just to help their neighbor. It reminds us that there are always those left behind, those for whom life in society does not work, those who unfortunately have a lonely life in which only their problems are recurring.
Remember, because in December 1989, I was a student at the École Polytechnique de Montréal, and I was a helpless witness to the events that changed my perception of life, affected several of my colleagues directly or indirectly and raised at the time the same feelings of disbelief and incomprehension.
But there is one thing that is very different between the two events: the attention given to humans, to all the citizens of the Kongsberg family. Although I do not directly suffer the consequences of this week’s attack, I appreciate the communications from the municipality which, from the early hours, established a support center where anyone could ask for support or communicate their concerns. Also, in addition to social media communications, personalized text messages were sent with relevant information.
I can only think of all the problems that many could have been spared if large-scale attention had existed over time… I believe that it is part of the experience, of what one learns over the course of events that we live.
Now that we can put faces on the victims, some are relieved, others are surprised and, finally, loved ones can mourn. Here, everyone knows everyone else, so it is a neighbor, a colleague or a friend who is touched. In a city like this, where the technology park employs thousands of engineers, the illogical is part of the unusual. But as always, people are resilient, so is society, and even if we still have to heal the wounds, we must also continue to think about the future, look ahead and continue with our lives. As an expatriate, it is at times like this that we feel really far from our family, from our loved ones.
What do you think? Express your opinion