I spent 10 days in frigid Finland with a wonderful friend and her family. I’m not sure why she thought it would be a good idea to invite me to visit her in Finland after our first meeting being only a few days during the Vienna summer, but she did.
I remember saying something like, “Are you sure? Because if you’re inviting me, I’m going to come.”
“Great! Come!” There was no hesitation.
If you know American culture like I do, then you know that “Hey, how’s it going?” is just another way to say “Hi” and that people don’t actually really want an answer. After a surprise run-in with an old friend, it’s common to hurry the conversation to a finish with, “Let’s grab coffee sometime.” Maybe you meant it in that one second, but then there’s no follow up. No active sincerity.
So I took my new Finnish friend at her word, and I visited her over the Christmas and New Year holidays. I took up space in her tiny apartment, and even kindly shared my picked-up airport cold with her. For the record, I felt bad about the cold. And the apartment. Her family put together a second Christmas, very Finnish, dinner for my enjoyment and education of their culture. Her sister took me to the public library where I was in heaven because I had time to sit and read for 5 hours straight without guilt of any kind.
One night around the dinner table (after lake ice skating and then sauna), we fell into a conversation about what we like and don’t like about our home countries and home cultures.
“Finnish people are honest.” My host explained. “We mean what we say. For example, it’s common knowledge that there are no refills even if the drink machine isn’t behind the counter. No one will go get a refill without paying.”
Oops. I sat there feeling guilty for the refill I had helped myself to in Helsinki’s Kamppi Subway.
A culture set on the pillars of honesty. I was astounded, and then the cynic in me thought just how easy it would be to swindle such an honest group if you had that honest stereotype on your side. And yet, the Finnish have been around for a long time. Their country may be young, but the people themselves have held their own as a culture and a people group.
I learned a lot from the Finnish (like how they combat cold), but for the moment, I think it’s good to sit with this idea of honesty and the Finnish adherence and pride in being an honest people.
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