Brasilians love their football (soccer) players. And, the crash of flight 2933 has hit the nation hard. The town of Chapeco, in the south of Brasil, was celebrating its best season ever as the team headed to the finals of the Copa Sudamericana in Colombia.
Now communication has not always been easy for this Portuguese-challenged traveler. I don’t understand anything on the radio. On television, I saw the wreckage of Flight 2933, but I couldn’t understand one word of the commentary. Even communication with most Brasilians I know is by way of Google Translate on their smart phones, if there is internet available. So, I really couldn’t sit down and talk to people easily about this disaster.
However, I’ve spent two weeks up close with Brasilian friends. I’ve seen them cry over an engagement, a retirement, loss in competition, a joyous moment of triumph in painting, and even reading my blogs. Two of my closest friends (and I won’t name the women but they know who they are) cry when we even talk about them crying. Emotions run strong and close to the surface.
So, I cannot even imagine the grief that is facing the town of Chapeco. In one fell swoop, they lost 51 players, staff and journalists. The local stadium, which could have held a triumph celebration, was instead prepared to hold their coffins as the city and country mourned. More than half the city’s population, at least 100,000 people, were expected to go the stadium for the wake.
There are no words that can ease this kind of pain. Fathers, sons and brothers were taken much too soon. And, those families left behind will never be the same. My only advice to the living is to live each day. Do what good you can do to brighten the lives of the people you love, those you come in contact with, and the world beyond. Don’t waste a moment or a day on negativity. Life is just too short for that. And, at moments like this, we are reminded just how short it can be.