Being in mainland Europe for the past month or so has been, at times, a bit of a traumatic experience. One of the qualities that I think St Andreans love the most about the bubble is how safe we are there--no one steals, there are no criminals lurking in the streets at three in the morning, front doors can remain unlocked. By contrast, my Italian family is paranoid that burglars will break into their homes, or that they will be robbed on the bus in broad daylight. In Mexico, as you can imagine, the paranoia is also there (and, granted, slightly more justified).
All my life I've been aware that there are countless reasons to be scared and always on the watch. Coming to St Andrews provided sweet release from this constant state of panic, and I could finally surrender to the natural conclusion that there's more good than bad people in the world. Unfortunately, of late, stealing is not so much a matter of being good or bad but is much more related to need. It is perhaps one of the most tragic consequences of the economic crisis that not only do people distrust their politicians and bankers, they also don't trust the people they encounter on a daily basis.
So leaving St Andrews will definitely cause me to have some trust issues: not the kind in which I don't trust people, rather the kind in which I trust everyone. This isn't necessarily a negative thing--isn't it good to give people the benefit of the doubt?--but I think it might all come down to the level of trust issues new people around me will have.
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