I dropped my car off for servicing early this morning.

The Volvo garage is on the northern outskirts of Hillerød, so while the mechanic got to work, I strolled the three kilometres into town, where my favourite café opens at eight.

The spring weather is wonderful. Six degrees and no wind.

I’m in plenty of time, so I take a detour around Frederiksborg Castle, where geese are swimming around on the mirror-like lake with their newly hatched ducklings. As I walk along the lake shore on this quiet morning, I think about how lucky I am.

Being born in Denmark was beyond my control, but it meant that I grew up in a society with a supportive infrastructure of benefits that all citizens have access to. I think of healthcare, education, social services, the justice system and so on. My life, which I am quite happy with, is built on that platform. I stand on the shoulders of those who fought for everyone to have a common foundation of security and equal opportunities.

In practical terms, this has meant that throughout my life I have been able to take risks without fear of being unable to pay for my children’s education or medical treatment.

Broadly speaking, this is the European model. In the Nordic countries, the shared social infrastructure based on solidarity is more comprehensive, and it is also here that the world’s most satisfied people live. And even though we pay sky-high taxes, have lots of holidays, can take a year off for parental leave and can stay home from work to look after our sick children, we are still among the richest countries in the world. We are also among the countries with the highest labour productivity. We don’t work that much, but when we do, we get things done.

We can trust each other

Now I’m sitting in a café listening to the cheerful buzz of conversation while the staff laugh in the kitchen. The espresso machine and milk frother are whistling merrily, and soft ballads play quietly in the background. Even though a cappuccino costs 45 kroner and a cheese roll 50, the café quickly fills up. The regulars have a page in a small pocket book and get lines that make the tenth cup free.

Over by the windows, I have been allowed to place a few of my books with belly bands indicating the price and my publisher’s MobilePay number. Every now and then, a little ping sounds on my phone when a guest buys a book. In the many years I have had this arrangement, not a single copy has gone missing.

Outside, the city is slowly waking up, and more people are arriving on the beautiful pedestrian street, which was renovated last year. Fascines have been laid so that rainwater is directed into the lake and not into the sewers, which had difficulty coping with the increasing amounts of water. At the same time, new paving stones were laid and planters with benches were installed. It looks very nice.

As I write these lines, I feel a little sad at the thought that not everyone on this planet can enjoy the same safety, peace and tranquillity that I experience. Some are unfortunate and live in a country at war or a country where there is not the same sense of community as here. Or countries where the political system is corrupt or ruled by idiots with deviant personalities.

There is enough wealth in this world for everyone to live in safety and pursue their dreams in peace, but this is prevented by people who do not believe they owe anyone anything. People who do not understand the meaning of the word ‘society’, people who are busy hating and despising rather than loving and respecting.