Whoever coined the phrase “love has no bounds” clearly had no experience of falling for someone across fortified international borders. But in today’s increasingly isolationist world, it’s a sentiment that’s put to the test every single day.
I thought I knew as much when I’d encountered people who had no choice but to surrender to the will of these ever-changing political goalposts. I was, intellectually, at least, aware of the toll it takes on a person when the trajectory of their life is dictated by souring public sentiment around immigration and arbitrarily punitive policies.
But empathy isn’t first-hand experience. And there’s nothing like reality to shake the foundations of what you think you know.