Impossible is Nothing

Nowadays teenagers seem to be incapable of setting their priorities rationally. They resemble Esaú, the hunter, and Kane, the businessman, in the sense that they apparently know what their aim is. However, teenagers, unlike Esaú and Kane, are not willing to make sacrifices to achieve their goals.
In my experience, youngsters know exactly where to head for, but the slightest idea of having to work hard or making sacrifices puts them off at once. Most of them are used to getting what they want on the spot: the minute they study and behave properly, their parents reward them in the twinkling of an eye. I wonder why most teenagers don´t come to think that the reward in itself is the fact that they are getting better educated as they become grown-ups.
Now that I´m writing this, I come to the conclusion that parents and teachers should show teenagers that a means to an end is as important as the result in itself. Advise them if they are close to lose their track just because they consider the means is not worthwhile.

By Miriam Rodriguez
Chapter 4

Do as we please?

I often wonder why is it that some people are often motivated by greed. And what´s even worse, why people following orders or fulfiling their own interests can cause so much damage in this world.
In my opinion, nothing can justify evil-doers. They may say they were obeying orders, like the tortures during the military dictatorship in Argentina. Soldiers are expected to obey orders without questioning them? As far as I am concerned we must question whoever it is, even ourselves, before acting.
Freedom is a double-edge weapon if used unwisely. That´s why I believe we must always make use of the ablility to reason: think over our real intentions, and analyse the conditions and consequences of our course of action.
Will human beings ever be ready to live in an ideal society like the one Thomas More presented in his Utopia?

By Miriam Rodriguez
Chapter 3

From Captains to Teachers

Savater´s parallel between the captain’s moral dilemma on the ship and how people choose to live their lives kept me thinking. What particularly called my attention this time was how people can handle things that they haven’t chosen for themselves.
Kids who haven’t chosen to be born in a particular country, city or neighbourhood are a case in point. They have no choice but to live there until they are old enough to move or to stay, as they prefer.
This led me into thinking of children who live in shanty towns or children whose parents are far from being model human beings. What is it that teachers can do to prevent these children from being condemned to follow their parents’ footsteps?
I strongly believe we must give our students the necessary tools so that later in life they can choose by themselves with a critical mind. It’s our duty to show them there is a different world from their own, and that there is no universal truth they must live up to. There are as many different perspectives as people in the world and it’s our moral responsibility to help them foster their ability to think critically.
By Miriam Rodriguez
Chapter 2

Free to choose, up to what extent?

If we are free to lead our life the way we want, shouldn´t there be any restrictions? I believe there are. Certain things we should or shouldn´t do just because they would condition other people´s choices, preventing them from living the way THEY desire. At understanding our rights end where other people´s start, we are ALL free when choosing what we think is better for us.
If we come to think we are not free to choose the course of our actions, we are totally wrong. I guarantee there´s no magical formula we can apply to a very same situation. Picture yourself, for instance, in a classroom with a mate, doing a final test in order to graduate as doctors. Would you let him copy from your sheet even if you knew his lack of knowledge could affect someone´s life in an emergency room? Would you turn a blind eye? Would you help him and then take the trouble to have a talk to him? Would you tell the teacher? The options are unlimited…
In the end it´s nobody but us who decide what path to take. In this way we will be accepting the consequences of our actions, and if we later find out we´ve made a mistake, we can always learn from them. Never fear free will!

By Miriam Rodriguez

(chapter 1)