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Antiwork

The practicality / privilege of leaving the US.

How many of you have left the US to go study or work elsewhere? I'm considering it now for the coming fall semester (western Europe), because I don't feel like I've got much momentum happening here in the states. I work (unemployed atm) in the environmental field and I just feel so.. undervalued here. At the same time though, packing up and moving far away seems… heavy handed? I feel strange thinking about this. I know so many people in their 20's who at least have jobs and are paying their bills. They're not living super comfortably, but they're making it work. I'm not *that* afraid of living abroad, I've done it once before. I mostly just feel like I've failed here. I can't help but feel a bit defeatist wanting to leave this country, even though I know that our generation is so fucked. I don't mean to compare…


How many of you have left the US to go study or work elsewhere?

I'm considering it now for the coming fall semester (western Europe), because I don't feel like I've got much momentum happening here in the states. I work (unemployed atm) in the environmental field and I just feel so.. undervalued here.

At the same time though, packing up and moving far away seems… heavy handed? I feel strange thinking about this. I know so many people in their 20's who at least have jobs and are paying their bills. They're not living super comfortably, but they're making it work. I'm not *that* afraid of living abroad, I've done it once before. I mostly just feel like I've failed here.

I can't help but feel a bit defeatist wanting to leave this country, even though I know that our generation is so fucked.

I don't mean to compare myself to others, I really don't: but so many people who flee their home country do so out of necessity. In my case, I feel like I just haven't been able to play the game well enough here. I think that says more about the circumstances we're living in than it does about me, but it's so disheartening.

How many of you have dealt with this? How do you reconcile these feelings?

Edit: I also want to acknowledge the privilege that accompanies being able to leave your home country regarding having opportunities elsewhere. I realize that this is not a reality for many of you, but it is something causing me to feel very unsure.

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