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| Silvia Jones in Heraklion's Venetian fortress, Crete |
Silvia Jones. Jedi Knight. Crete, Greece.
I'm Silvia Jones. I was born in Heraklion, in Crete. I was born in the cradle of the European civilization, the country of the great philosophers, the country where democracy was born, the country of the oracles and sibyls. Perhaps because of these characters, I started to be very interested in philosophy and I became a Jedi Knight. Jedi is a religion that fights against evil and that proclaims that you must do good acts and be a good person to avoid the dark side.
-Good morning, Silvia Jones, and thanks to attend us.
-Good morning. Welcome to my country, the cradle of Mediterranean civilization.
-Thanks. It's always a pleasure being here. Well, to start this interview I would like to know how you define yourself.
-I'm a Jedi Knight, a person who fights against dark side. I try to help people in their day by day at the same time I try to grow as a good person.
-How is a day in your life?
-Well, I have trained a lot. I must get some mental powers that aren’t easy to have. It requires a lot of effort and work and especially concentration.
-Why?
-Because you must get a great peace inside you and talk to your brain to order it to do things that go farther than conventional ones.
-Then, do you believe in magic?
-This is not magic. This is about concentration and believes in you. I was born Crete, in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, between Occident and Orient. In Greek culture, heroes and gods have been something very important that has influenced our personality. I’m not a hero or a magician. I arrive to reach these skills because I practice a lot. It’s like a martial art.
-But a karateka doesn’t move objects…
-No, but they are able to break heavy and hard objects with their hands like bricks or pieces of wood without injure him. It’s the same. The power of concentration is the clue.
-How do you feel being a member of The Jones family?
-I'm not an extroverted person. Silence and concentration are very important for me and I talk more with me than with people. You assimilate this behaviour and then you continue with the same attitude when you are not working. It doesn't mean that you don't disconnect of your work, it means that, sometimes, your beliefs blend your character.
-How is a normal day with The Jones?
-It's difficult to talk about a normal day with The Jones. There's always something new to do, to discover or to enjoy. I like my family. I feel well with them and this is something very important because if you're happy in a place with someone, you can offer the best of you.
-How long have you been studying English?
-English has been always very important in Greece, especially since the arrival of the massive tourism but I didn't study English at school, I studied Russian.
-Russian? It's not possible!
-Yes. Greece has a lot of things in common with the Russian culture. Both of us are orthodox and we haven't Latin alphabets.
-Then, you speak three languages? Is it very difficult to do it?
-No it isn't. In fact, as many languages you speak is easier to learn the next. I have learnt this from The Jones. All of them speak, at least, two languages and this is very important because a language is a powerful tool of communication and, in my case, two languages mean two alphabets, too, and with English, one more.
-What can you explain about your life with The Jones?
-It's a fantastic experience. We're fifteen different people with different characters and points of view but with a common objective: improve our English to improve in our jobs. It's amazing.
-And after?
-After, we will be like the Greek Islands. We will take different ways, we will stay in different places with new people and new experiences but there will be something that no one will be able to take out: if you have been a Jones, this is something that survives in time, you will always be a Jones and all these experiences that we have lived together will live meanwhile we were able to remember them.
-Which is your best memory with the family?
-It's very difficult to choose one but I remember my birthday. It was an especial day because we could celebrate it all together.
-Which is your reference?
-I’m a Jedi Knight and, of course, I have two great Masters: Yoda and Obi-Wan-Kenobi. They are the best and their knowledge is eternal but I’m Greek and I have another reference: Ulysses, the hero who was born in Ithaca.
-What do you think about Ulysses?
-I love his adventures, his intelligence to overcome problems, his courage to fight against the enemies and I like his family because as Penelope as Telemachus are clever, too. I love the mythological idea of searching Ithaca.
-What is your idea about Ithaca?
-Well, I take as a reference the poem of Konstandinos Kavafis about Ithaca. For me, Ithaca is the end of a travel that you must enjoy with all your heart. You’re going to suffer lots of problems, bad moments and disgraces but you must go on until you arrive to the finish line that is Ithaca. When you arrive, you will have enough time to think about the entire path and meanwhile you have had some people like a guide during this journey, then it will be time to be a guide for other people. Ithaca is life in itself and this is the reason because of is an eternal poem. Ithaca is a must.
-Could you recommend me a Greek philosopher?
-It’s impossible to choose only one. Every one of them offered something important to the classic philosophy: Aristotle, Anaximander, Socrates, Plato, Anaxagoras, Epicurus… but I suppose if I must choose, I will talk about both of them: Apollonia of Crete and Hypatia of Alexandria.
-Why?
-Because both of them are women and the role of the women philosophers is not as considered as the men one. Apollonia was born in Crete, an island that has an incredible culture and history. Crete is the cradle of Minoan and Mycenaean cultures but the island also received the influence of Romans, Byzantines, Arabians, Venetians and Ottomans. It’s a multicultural island that has created its idiosyncrasy taking the best of every influenced that it has received.
-How is Crete nowadays?
-Well, one of the most important touristic places in Greece, of course. Tourism is helping my country to overcome the terrible economic crisis that we suffered some years ago. Greece has lots of things and places to show because the Classic Greek civilization was an incredible period and we keep thousands of examples to be visited. I also have incredible beaches and more that 1,000 beautiful islands.
-Do you think you are going to overcome this crisis?
-Every economic crisis is overcome with time, resources and, of course, international help but there is another crisis who is deeper and nobody pays attention. It’s moral and ethics crisis. We arrived to implosion as a country because the powerful classes stole lots and lots of millions and the middle and poor classes didn’t pay any kind of taxes. This is insane. You can’t live from international money and investments; you must create your own richness and control, in a fair way, the destination of taxes.
-How do you see the future of your country?
-Well, I’m a Jedi Knight, not a seer but I think we’re going to live in difficult conditions during some years. We must adapt our country to European standards if we don’t want to suffer another crisis like that. In my personal opinion, we are very important for the EU not because they were very interested in our population but we are a strategic point in the continent. We’re the border with Turkey and this fact offers us the possibility of being very important and necessary.
-How do you see the present?
-We are the descents of the great philosophers and the Classic Greek. We will survive. We are offering great artists to the world: Mikis Theodorakis, Vangelis, Kharis Alexíou, Maria Farantouri… Culture is our best investment and we will continue to offer immortal works and performances because this is our lifestyle.
-Which is your advice for the future?
-Don’t give up. Follow your dreams and be in peace with yourself. It’s impossible to be fine with the entire world if you aren’t fine with yourself. All starts in you, and all finishes in you. Be authentic, don’t imitate, because originality is something much appreciated. Don’t copy, innovate. Don’t accept real truths, question all of them as Greek philosophers did. It’s the only way to advance to the future with guarantees. Past is beautiful to evocate good moments and learn about old experiences but we live in the present and we must fight the future, for us and for next generations. They deserve the best and we must work hard to reach it.
-Thank you very much, Silvia Jones.
-May the force be with you.
As you set out for Ithaka
hope your road is a long one,
full of adventure, full of discovery.
hope your road is a long one,
full of adventure, full of discovery.
Hope your road is a long one.
Keep Ithaka always in your mind.
Arriving there is what you’re destined for.
But don’t hurry the journey at all.
Better if it lasts for years,
so you’re old by the time you reach the island,
wealthy with all you’ve gained on the way,
not expecting Ithaka to make you rich.
Ithaka gave you the marvelous journey.
Without her you wouldn't have set out.
She has nothing left to give you now.
And if you find her poor, Ithaka won’t have fooled you.
Wise as you will have become, so full of experience,
you’ll have understood by then what these Ithakas mean.
Konstandinos Petru Kavafis
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