debt. This overspending, combined with a lack of oversight for public funds and also corruption and tax evasion, was a signal that the Greeks had drifted away from their traditional core values. As a small country, unable to print more money, Greece faces a challenging future as the nation’s leaders seek to stabilize the economy and restore public trust and confidence.
On our own personal odyssey, we wanted to go beyond the common images of Greece to understand the deeper character and spirit of the Greek people, to understand their attitudes toward life and, of course, to share in their ageless wisdom. We wanted to understand how the Greeks were coping with, surviving, and even in some cases, thriving during this period of stress and uncertainty, so that we could share these lessons with others who may be facing similar circumstances in their own countries and lives. We wanted to learn how the Greeks were finding meaning in their everyday lives and work despite the chaos around them. Although our lives may appear to be very different from the indigenous people who live in the traditional Greek villages of today, at the basic human level they are the same. We are all trying to live the meaningful life.
Greece is a very special and sacred place. When we think of Greece, we often think of the whitewashed houses with blue doors and shutters painted to match the colors of the Greek national flag (and some say, reflecting the colors of the sea or sky). We think of the many islands where tiny fishing boats lay docked in the forefront of sandy beaches and vast rolling hills filled with olive groves. We think of the laughter of people as they gather to dine and dance with large groups of family and friends. And of course, we think of the origin of the Olympic Games.
Greece has also been honored as the birthplace or cradle of Western civilization. The Greeks were leaders who built the foundations in many areas, such as architecture, mathematics, medicine, music, politics (including democracy), science, theater, and many others, which established the way and quality of life that we experience and enjoy to this very day. Many of us are familiar with the stories of the Greek gods, such as Apollo, Atlas, Dionysus, Hades, Hercules, Hermes, Poseidon, and Zeus, and Greek goddesses like Aphrodite, Artemis, Athena, Demeter, Gaia, Hera, Hestia, and Hygeia. The ancient Greek philosophers, Pythagoras, Thales, Heraclitus, Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Hypatia, and others, are well-known for their advanced views of the world and contributions to modern thinking. (The early “pre-Socratic” Greek philosophers, like Heraclitus, were contemporaries of the Indian spiritual teacher Siddhartha Gautama, the historical Buddha, and the Chinese philosophers Lao-tzu and Confucius; all offered complementary, if not alternative, perspectives on the meaning of life.) Greek was the common language of the Mediterranean countries and at least a third of all words we use in English are of Greek origin. In the now famous words of the English poet Percy Bysshe Shelley, written in 1821, “We are all Greeks. Our laws, our literature, our religion, our arts have their root in Greece.”
Other countries and cultures have benefited from the foundation that the Greeks laid and have now raced ahead to achieve great success in the worlds of commerce, technology, and even politics. With its small population, Greece is overshadowed by the giants in today’s commercial world—the United States, China, Japan, Brazil, Russia, etc. Although some say Greece peaked too early in the first Golden Age, approximately twenty-five hundred years ago, we believe that the second Golden Age of Greece is coming!
Understanding the Deeper Character
On our journey, we visited many traditional Greek villages and were treated with amazing hospitality. We were welcomed in to enjoy simple meals of feta cheese, olives, freshly baked bread, and ripe fruit and vegetables. We drank ouzo, raki, and red wine, and laughed and danced until the sun came up once again. We danced on the very beach where the character Zorba danced and felt the burdens of life lift from our shoulders. We rose at dawn to watch the fishermen return with their early morning catches. We walked in the footsteps of the Minoans and marveled at their high quality of life, lived so many millennia ago. We celebrated birthdays, “name days,” weddings, and special holidays with feasts attended by extended families and people from neighboring villages. We sat with villagers of all ages to listen to their life stories. We explored, we listened, and we learned.
We discovered that it is an interesting time for everyone in Greece, given the recent challenges of the economic crisis and the austerity, or cost-cutting measures, implemented throughout the country. When we asked about these challenges, the villagers’ responses revealed their unique and resilient spirit:
“Now we suffer but something good will come from this. We will make it through this, just as we have made it through other tough times in our history.”
“We have each other. We can share our food with each other.”
“Just as the olive tree can be cut in half through its trunk and a new tree will grow from the cut, we will grow once again after this cut.”
Throughout our travels, we found that the people in the traditional Greek villages spoke and lived simply but were incredibly wise about life. They knew how to live with joy and meaning. They knew how to build community, treat one another well, and connect in authentic ways. They knew how to embrace all of life—all the ups and downs, all the difficulties and joys. They knew how to live not just with their heads, but with their hearts and spirits as well. And we also discovered that, even today, they know about and practice the wisdom of the ancient Greek philosophers.
Join us on our odyssey as we share how the lessons from the villagers and the ageless wisdom from the ancient Greek philosophers provide the step-by-step formula for how to live a meaningful life! Along the way, we’ve also provided OPA! Affirmations, which can help guide you to take more positive action in your life. In chapter two, we explore the origins, history, and deeper meaning of the common Greek word “OPA!” Then we share how the word OPA! translates into a new lifestyle and work style, which we call The OPA! Way.
OPA! AFFIRMATION
I find joy and meaning in my life when I view my life as a personal odyssey.
It was a beautiful summer’s evening and we were enjoying the fresh sea breeze blowing across the patio of the small restaurant nestled in the harbor. We were just finishing the last course of a wonderful feast of local food when our host stopped by our table.
“Tonight we have a special treat for you. Tonight we dance!” he said, glowing with pride, eager to share a bit of the traditional culture with us. In haste, several of the local men cleared away the empty tables and prepared a space for the dance. Slowly the Greek music filled the air and, one by one, the locals rose and joined in with the dance.
As is common with Greek dance, it starts small and ends big. With some urging from the more experienced Greek dancers, it doesn’t take much time before “the dance” becomes a community affair. We joined in, awkwardly trying to follow the steps, but we focused more on the overall joy of the dance than on whether or not we missed a few steps or two.
Soon the Greek word “OPA!” filled the air, and everyone in the restaurant, including some international travelers who did not speak Greek, rose from their chairs and joined the line of dancers who, by now, were twisting and turning their way across the patio and through the restaurant tables. Everyone got involved since they all knew, without really knowing why or how, that “OPA!” is a call to action and a sign of belonging.
