Her labour has been going on for two years and what is, with hindsight, remarkable is that the new offspring could have been delivered comparatively simply and easily if the attendant European midwives responsible for helping if the birth became troubled had come forward to help more quickly and purposefully rather than letting personal interest and apathy get in the way. As a result, what began as a minor problem has escalated to be one where the welfare of mother and child are at serious risk.
Greece has her own responsibility for the situation she finds herself in, of course, and it cannot be otherwise but that her soul has brought her, and us, to this place of painful change for good reason. However, she, her leaders and all those who are affected by her situation (which will be everybody) could have made this journey more easily: if she had had wise guidance and attention from the time she joined the Euro the hard choices she faces would not exist, and similarly if her debt troubles had been addressed more seriously when they became apparent in 2010, the present impasse could have been avoided. As a result Greece is cornered between two places of pain - the chaos of default and bankruptcy and having to start again, or a European bailout leading to decades of harsh austerity and total loss of sovereignty.
Furthermore, a quasi civil war is being fought between the suffering people of Greece who refuse to take more punishment and loss of power, and their representatives many of whom prefer appeasement and a short term solution to preserve the illusion of the status quo. Issues of power and control on a massive scale are inherent in what is occurring in Greece and more widely, globally, beyond.
One way or another Greece will achieve her transition and however painful it is, the process of her re-birth will result in a new democracy that will be an example to all who watch. There may be signs of inexperience and her nurses will not know what they are doing at first, but they will learn quickly and will teach others by their example. The re-birth is very close now, and while the discomfort is great and it must be hard for Greeks to be aware of anything but the physicality and emotion of the experience, I hope that somehow they can look ahead to the aftermath and see the good, the joy that can emerge from these troubled times. All, really, is well.]]>
