Hope for next Generations

This is the Winning Essay that I wrote for a scholarship:


Do you feel grateful every time you have a glass of water? or how about when you take a shower, eat, or sleep under a roof?
According to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, water, food, clothing and shelter, represent the the largest and most fundamental requirements for survival. Perhaps this would explain why 22,000 children die around the world today: the causes are poverty, hunger, easily preventable diseases and illnesses, and other poverty-related causes.

Poverty can be defined as the state of one who lacks a certain amount of material possessions or money. Absolute poverty refers to being unable to afford basic human needs, such as clean and fresh water, nutrition, education, clothing and shelter. According to the world bank, over 80% of the world’s population live on under $10 a day. Some of the biggest problems of poverty are caused by a lack of medicine, education and a huge disproportion on the distribution of money. Therefore, in order to abolish poverty, education for societies that live in undesirable conditions must be a priority. Health is a major cause of death in poor societies, a health system must be implemented, along with a way to maintain it. Last but not least, to eliminate poverty in the world is an attempt that will take effort and collaboration of the world’s population, rich and poor, and an investment that will require a leap of faith from all of those who invest in these developing countries. I believe that poverty is a problem that can be solved as long as key factors, such as education, health and money, are no longer an issue.

"Give a man a fish and you will feed him for a day, teach a man how to fish, and feed him for a lifetime." Education is a consequence of poverty, and as so, it continues as a vicious cycle that does not contribute to the growth of a society, but rather slows progress down. I believe that an education will provide the tools necessary to grow and develop a community. Children can grow to have different roles in the community, some will become farmers and grow food; some doctors, that will cure and prevent illnesses caused by hunger, virus and living conditions; some will work in construction for future homes; and some will create artifacts to sell and export. I believe that the more education they have, the more the economy will flow as there will be more jobs and growth opportunity.

In addition, there should be education on how to maintain hygiene, eating patterns and sexuality to prevent illnesses that may arise from certain living conditions. Medical facilities should be established to maintain health and remain hopeful about a future that does exists.

Inequality is usually associated with poorer, developing nations. But for many years, studies have shown that many wealthier nations also suffer from inequality, sometimes at levels similar to those of some developing countries. I witness this everyday as I walk to and from school: homeless men and women on the side of the street and on every corner asking for some change. However, I have formed my opinion of part of the cause of this problem: education. I do not limit education to high-school, and even college education. I am referring to education on problems such as drugs, alcoholism, and prostitution. There is a common belief that most homeless people are drunks, drug addicts or have another sort of addiction. A good friend of mine, who shares my passion for learning about poverty and doing what we can to reduce it, chatted with some homeless who have made South Beach their "home without a roof". She interviewed a few, and all of them had a drug addiction. They would not only confess that it was their addiction what brought them to their current condition, but would also admit that any money they collected through donations (and the state), was spent on alcohol. This infuriated me, as some of these people actually had an education and a life that was not in extreme poverty, but due to a lack of information or guidance, they find themselves in miserable conditions. This is another reason why I don't believe in donations to the poor on the streets, but I believe in investing our time to assist these men and women who have lost the path and purpose in life.

Inequality is a current issue, 76% of the world's goods are consumed by the wealthiest 20% of the world's population, while the rest starves. The share on income is poorly distributed, according to the World Bank, around 60% of the share of income belongs to the richest 20%. Social cohesion and the level of trust and comfort people will have in other societies is one of the factors I consider as a milestone for the investment that it may take to fix the economic system in developing countries. A strong financial system, backed by a solid government system, would help the economy flow. I do not believe in just donating money to buy water and food for the poor. I believe in investing in education, which will generate jobs, and then you can have farmers mowing their land, teachers educating their future citizens, doctors curing the sick, women sewing and creating fabrics, which can then be sold and exported to bring an income, and so on. This way, an economy will be formed, along with laws and regulations, and as previously mentioned: a solid government system. But we have some problems that require bigger investments: the land may not be treatable, so a technologically advanced irrigation system may be needed; solid infrastructures will need to be created for school, living and medical facilities; and an monetary capital will be needed to fund these. It is this type of investment the one that will require a leap of faith from humanity to help our brothers and sisters, and he future that awaits our future generations.

Explosiones de Amor

Me encanta sentir el amor, en cualquiera de sus formas: una buena amiga, una mano que te ayuda, una persona desamparada a quien le das agua de vida, una sonrisa al extraño, una comida de tu mamá.

Muchas veces nos preocupamos por lo que parece ser grande, tu esposo, novio, hijos, ilusiones... Pero no paramos a disfrutar de los detalles que son lo que hacen nuestro dia a dia.

Incluso me sucede que me preocupo por esas ilusiones de amor, que si duran? si no es de verdad? si sera El verdadero? si me quiere o no me quiere? si es honesto o son sólo palabras lo que dice?

Lo mejor es disfrutar la explosión de amor, como si fuese un show de fuegos artificiales, que terminará pero lleno tu mirada de colores y fantasias por un tiempo, y el año que viene, el dia de la independencia, o el año nuevo, continuará trayendo ilusiones de maravillas.

Una grata sorpresa, vi a un amor, materia pura convertida en una explosión de alquimia, por un momento mis iluciones de vivir una eternidad con él volvieron a invadir a mi corazón y mi mente. Claro que es una explosión y nada más, una grata sorpresa que me regaló y dibujó una sonrisa en mi alma y mi corazón.

Aprendí a disfrutar, admirar y dejarme llevar por mis explosiones, manteniendo los pies en la tierra. Aceptarlas por lo que son, y recordar los bonitos momentos que vivimos.

-D

Alquimia, en nuestro dia a dia

"Si lo que tu has encontrado esta formado por materia pura, jamas se pudrirá. Y tu podrás volver un dia. Si fue solo un momento de luz, como la explosión de una estrella, entonces no encontrarás nada cuando regreses. Pero habrás visto una explosión de luz. Y esto sólo ya habra valido la pena." El Alquimista, Paulo Coelho.

Esta frase resonó en mí como el eco en una cueva desolada. Está relacionada al amor. Millones de veces nos ilusionamos con lo que hasta llegamos a llamar "amor." La prueba esta en si ese amor perdurará miles de años, tormentas e incendios - ya que como la materia pura, jamas se pudrirá. La respuesta a esta pregunta es que la mayoría de las veces - se pudrirá.

Ahora, yo no se mucho de Alquimia, ni me recuerdo de mis clases de química, pero teóricamente existe la posibilidad de que (en este libro) el metal cambie de propiedad, y se convierta en oro. Si es así, entonces tambien existe la posibilidad de que el amor cambie de forma, sea un amor de amigo(a), novio(a), esposo(a), padre y madre. Tenemos esos amigos que se convierten en conocidos con el tiempo, pero tambien tenemos los que siguen firmes aunque años hayan pasado sin que se hayan visto. Llega tambien un momento en nuestras vidas en el que nuestros padres se convierten en grandes amigos. Pero una de las conversiones más curiosas, que rara vez sucede, son en las que la persona quien fue algún dia nuestra pareja, se convierte en un gran amigo.

He tenido la fortuna de tener grandes amores que ahora somos amigos, una amistad que perdurara por siempre.

Pero la cantidad de explosiones que he visto en mi corta vida, han llenado mi dia a dia de entretenimiento y fantasias. Tambien he llegado a conocer grandes caracteres que me han hecho crecer como persona, y me han dejado de recuerdo memorias, hobbies y gustos musicales. Pero lo mas importante que me han dejado es la continua esperanza de que algún dia conoceré a mi "materia pura" y amor eterno.

-D