Gosia, Poland, Age 49
For me, freedom is the ability to be happy in my own way, to make my own decisions, and to direct my own life. I believe that there is no such thing as absolute freedom because, while living in society, we must remember that others also have the right to freedom.
Freedom also means the ability to move freely—I still feel fear when I remember the times that are, thankfully, long gone. The struggle to get a passport and a visa when my mother and I wanted to visit our loved ones beyond the “Iron Curtain,” and the border controls… I hope such times never return.
Freedom is also the ability to study and work wherever I desire, to travel without restrictions. That doesn’t necessarily mean I want to live, work, or travel abroad—it’s just the fact that I have the option to do so at any time that defines freedom for me.
Unfortunately, freedom is not something we are granted forever. That’s why we should appreciate and respect it because we never know when it might be taken away from us again.