Wiser With Age

Tag: violence

  • In My Mother’s Words: A lesson in love and hate

    In My Mother’s Words: A lesson in love and hate


    A woman with short hair wearing red necklace.

    Many people say they don’t watch the news, because it’s negative. I don’t necessarily agree with that mindset, but I respect it and understand it. But, there are times even I wish I didn’t have to watch the news. The idea that “ignorance is bliss†is something I wish I could achieve sometimes, but with my profession, I can’t.

    This summer alone, 49 people were killed at a nightclub in Orlando, where I lived for six years. I used to go dancing at that same nightclub. Racial tensions are at the highest I ever remember. Oklahoma. Baton Rouge. Minnesota. Dallas. Terror attacks continue. New York. Istanbul. Baghdad. France. The Syrian civil war is wiping out the little population it has left, and the ones who are lucky enough to escape are rejected by many of the places where they seek refuge. It’s draining. It’s frightening. It’s exhausting. It’s inexplicable.

    They say hate is taught, which reminds me of something my mom has always said:

    “Los hijos nacen blancos como un libro. Uno escribe en ellos lo que uno quiere.â€

    (When children are born, they are like a blank book. Parents, and others, write in them what they want.)

    Sometimes, other things like mental health play a role in all these scenarios, and after a certain point, you’re responsible for your own decisions. But, I can’t help to look at kids and how they all play together. They don’t ask questions. There’s no prejudice. I’m sure they see a difference, because we’re all different, but they don’t pay it mind. I guess it’s part of being a blank book.

    I’ve never understood what the big deal is about people being different. This saying from my mom taught me we all have a story, and most importantly, it reminds me that before I judge, I should take a moment and read their book instead.

    A woman with short hair wearing red necklace.Victoria Moll-Ramirez is a broadcast journalist based in New York City. She is originally from Miami, FL and had the great fortune of being raised by the sassiest, spunkiest, wisest, most hysterical Honduran woman in the world. Victoria’s mother, Bélgica, is 60-years-old, resides in Little Havana (Miami) and enjoys a good margarita accompanied by a heartrending ranchera. Victoria blogs about her mom’s funny and wise sayings on, “In My Mother’s Words.â€

  • A nun provides peace in a violence ridden community in Mexico

    A nun provides peace in a violence ridden community in Mexico


    A woman with short hair wearing red necklace.
    Sister Consuelo Morales (Photo/Victor Hugo Valdivia)

    Ever since Consuelo Morales was a small child in the northeastern metropolitan city of Monterrey, Mexico, she says she remembers feeling the unceasing urge to help others. She quickly learned doing so is what made her the happiest.

    One day, when she was in elementary school, Morales recalls encountering some poor children who didn’t have any shoes.

    “I took them to the shoe store where my mother bought my shoes, and I talked with the salespeople there to sell me 23 pairs of shoes,†says Morales. “I told them my mother would pay for them.â€

    Her mom was shocked when she got the bill later on. What also surprised her mom, Morales says, is when she was a little older and decided to become a Catholic nun.

    “When I finished my BA, she sent me to Canada for two years to see if I could forget that I wanted to be a nun,†says Morales. “She was expecting me to marry, or anything else, but even there, I found some way to work with poor people. It is something I have inside of me.â€

    Morales spent many years working to help indigenous communities and children in Veracruz and Mexico City, and she returned to Monterrey in 1992, when she heard her home city was in dire need of help – from abuse in state-run orphanages to the forced displacement of people from their lands. It was then she helped found Citizens in Support of Human Rights (Ciudadanos en Apoyo de Derechos Humanos, CADHAC), and she has devoted her life to that cause for the past two decades.

    Her work has been especially challenging from 2007 through 2012, she says, when the drug war started to reach a peak and the narcos started killing and kidnapping innocent members of the community. She has served as a support system for family members of the victims. According to the latest figures, it has taken the lives of nearly 23,000 people – and counting.

    A woman with short hair wearing red necklace.
    Courtesy CADHAC

    Morales, now 67, still arrives at CADHAC around 8:30 am every morning. Throughout the day, she has appointments with people needing help with justice or violent situations.

    “They come and ask questions and share information with us, and we help them resolve their problems,†says the nun. “We may help them, and stay beside them, but never in front of them. We help them with the tools to get justice.â€

    Most recently, Morales is one of the protagonists of a documentary film, “Kingdom of Shadows,†which speaks about the consequences of the U.S. – Mexico drug war.

    “We all are involved in this, and we have to give the little we have to support and make a change in this situation,†she says.

    What advice about life would she give her younger self with the wisdom she now has at this age?

    “Try to be in harmony with yourself,” says Morales, adding, “Treat others as you would have them do unto you.”