Better being rich than poor

What is the value of a person's life? That is a complex question. A few days ago, while at the wake of a person dear to me, next door the funeral of Margarita Gómez was taking place. Margarita had been murdered in the region of Cordoba (Northwest Colombia) (Link in Spanish) in early January. A packed church and a swarm of reporters trying to inform the public of the progress of the ceremony (and that of Mateo Matamala, her boyfriend, both students at Bogota's most prestigious university, murdered at the same time) showed the concern of a society for their families and the lack of sense behind such a crime. While Margarita was fare-welled by her family and friends, the President anounced (Spanish) a reward of 500 million pesos (about USD$300,000) for information conducive to the capture of those responsible for this crime.

Besides the philosophical discussion about the virtues of using rewards as a mean to solve crimes like these, it is remarkable to see the haste by the authorities to find the causes and people responsible for such an absurd crime. However, in a country where victims are in the thousands, why isn't there the same apparent haste when the victim is a peasant, the unemployed, or anyone else from a common background? This is a country where people with means live in a different country to people without them; a country where health, education and justice are as readily available as fat is one's bank account. A country where the support and recognition to victims of violent acts is inversely proportional to their place in a perverse social pyramid; a country of ill-fated bubbles.

Without trying to diminish the importance of giving justice to the families of Mateo and Margarita, we can only wish all victims of violence had the same support from the authorities. Our society badly needs a justice system that values the life of everybody, that works for everybody, that helps transform a country of invisible victims and powerful victimizers into a country with opportunities for all and hope for the future. A country worth transforming, not fleeing from.

Now the government announces its “unbreakable commitment” to eliminate those criminal mobs that operate in the region of Cordoba. Unbreakable only after the death of two innocent but high-society victims? Where was that commitment at the time of the murder of tenths of other victims? Well, it wasn't there yet because in this country, even after death, is better to be rich than poor. 

Transcendence

There are a few questions we all ask at one time or another through our lifes:

What is going to happen when I am no longer in this world?

What is waiting for me “at the other side”?

When will I cease existing (being)?

OK, I'll admit to it the first one is a tricky question. It depends on what we have done, but it boils down to not much: there will be pain and sorrow amongst those who love us, a few headaches (bigger or smaller depending on our ability to sort out our earthly affairs), but in general the world will keep on going around-and-around and the impact of our death will fade away as do the ripples after the pebble sinks in the water.

The second question is trickier because is based on faith. Nobody knows for certain what (if there is anything at all) waits for us at “the other side”, and whatever each person believes is their own and the result of conscious or subliminal decisions. The fact is trying to answer this question has resulted in wars, deaths and also acts of courage. And since this discussion never gets anywhere, we may as well leave it there.

The third is the interesting question. To know when will we cease existing (being) we need to separate our physical existence from a transcending existence. The physical existence ends when we die. And, when will that happen? Nobody knows. To die we just need to be alive and that is a common characteristic of everyone reading these lines. Hence, there is no point in worrying about it; “Live as if you are about to die, but be ready for tomorrow” has been my motto and it has worked well so far.

On the other hand, what would transcending existence be? Is that I cause and that goes beyond my physical entity: my children, the consequences of my actions and the ideas I make happen. Is that for which I am remembered. And I believe transcendence -and immortality- lies in the ability to be remembered long after our physical existence has come to an end. That is where we can make a difference and live for ever in this world.

That is why I invite you to transcend and for your actions to make you live for ever in the hearts of those you have touched; to make your ideas reality, to improve our world and maybe, just maybe, live for decades or centuries; to make our children a reflection of our positive qualities and to grow up with the tools to transcend themselves. I invite to start being immortal from today.

--This entry honors the memory of Angela Hernandez, who passed away last week and of whose transcendence I am a witness