WE LIVE IN A REAL WORLD
The new trimester has started, we’re back for three weeks now and the adaptation is different for every kid. As parents, we hope that if there is a change of school, as it is my case, the child, I mean, the teenager, fits well, make friends and especially surround himself with good companions. Friendships are important at this age, indeed, they are basic, I would say, because becoming a teenager is not easy and there are many ‘inputs’ that may have an effect on our everyday life. I do not want to be an overprotecting mum but neither do I want to be a too cool one, and the right balance is difficult to reach.
Those who have been through this can, perhaps, help us, novices, to face this new stage. For this reason after reading Santi Baró‘s book, MEMORIAS DE UN CADÁVER, I felt the need to recommend it to all the teenagers I know and to their parents as well. Bela, the protagonist, doesn’t achieve to adapt and has no friends. She doesn’t find any meaning in life and has many fears that she cannot get over. She thinks that the only way out is to close her eyes and let go, but is that really the only way out?
Santi Baró knows how to deal with this sensitive issue without hurting sensitivities and how to write down in black and white the problem that more than a teenager may have suffered without anyone of the family or friends aware of the situation. Because we don’t all live or see things the same way but we have to make an effort to put ourselves in the others’ shoes and to lend a hand if necessary. Not only teachers must work on this subject at school but also the parents themselves, for they are the first who must educate their children with values and give them the correct tools to be strong but also to learn to empathize, to help and not hurt the people around you.
With this reading we are taking a first step, and I congratulate the publishing house SM for having the courage to publish a book dealing with a tough subject. The subject is tough but it concerns anyone, and it’s even necessary to talk about it if it is treated with respect, sensitivity and that empathy Santi has with his audience. A brilliant novel that helps you think about life and death, but almost without realizing it…