Whether we like it or not, our decisions reveal us. What I choose reveals more than my words.  And even when I don’t decide, I decide : silence can be prudence or cowardice; accepting a commitment can be a leap into maturity or simple routine. Every free act leaves an indelible mark on the map of my life. A map that is a visible imprint.

Person and Personality

We are not finished, immobile pieces, but open projects—being and becoming. A person  is  and, at the same time, is on the path toward his original version: the name God gave him from the beginning of time. Freedom chisels  —  in a gerund—our personality like a sculptor who strikes marble until he brings out the figure that slumbered within.

This game is played out in the ordinary, minute by minute, for example, by a teenager studying, even though no one is watching; by a worker who refuses to falsify a report, even though no one notices; by a mother who gets up at dawn to take care of her child, with a smile and without a complaint… Personality isn’t improvised: it’s forged in the small loyalties of each day.

Our Loves Define Us

More than titles or achievements, what defines us are the loves that sustain our story. I would dare to say, “My resume? MY FRIENDS.” They are the ones who write the truth of my biography. And Jorge Guillén expressed it powerfully in Cántico:  “Friends, nothing more. The rest is jungle.”

We are connected beings. Freedom flourishes in connections: in the patience of a friendship, in fidelity to a yes, in the present for an eternal future, in marriage; in the unconditional and simple dedication to one’s children, or in that afternoon when I decide to spend time with a friend instead of staying comfortably at home. When the self closes in, freedom withers; when it opens up, it expands and flourishes.

Freedom and Human Excellence

We are connected beings, and the ultimate bond that liberates is love. Love that reveals who I am; love that gives me height to fly; love that makes my work “the doing of Someone.”

Freedom is “congealed” in love, and is actualized in every act that reinitiates it; love becomes true in forgiveness. Forgiveness is the most sublime gift. It is the gift that gives life, even if the other neither asks for it nor deserves it, but because I choose to free myself and liberate myself from the chains that enslave.

Who hasn’t experienced that scene? A family argument that seemed irreparable… until someone breaks the ice and apologizes. A broken friendship that revives when one recognizes their mistake. Forgiveness not only saves a relationship: it reveals us all, it reveals what makes us free: that freedom that enables us to love. Only love breaks the chains of hatred and resentment. Love heals all wounds. Love as a personal decision, not as an electric shock that melts the original installation.

The Decision Process

Every decision is a unique act, there is not always a turning back, and with consequences, no

always anticipated. Some are corrected; others leave a lasting mark…

Making a good decision requires two steps:
1.  INFORM YOURSELF with true, sufficient, appropriate and convenient sources.

Not everything needs to be tasted to know how it tastes…

2. REFLECT : pause to consider the what, the why, the purpose, the how, and the when. With whom, where…

Too much information suffocates; too little suffocates.

 To be informed without thinking is to waste time; to think without data is to jump into the void. And in the midst of this ever-unstable balance, to know oneself : what is my Achilles’ heel? The chain always breaks at the weakest link. Do I know my weak links?

How many times have we heard the saying: “If you want, you can.” It’s not entirely true, and half-truths are confusing. I like to say it another way: “If I want what I can, I can do what I want.” Freedom isn’t dreaming of the impossible, but embracing what’s within my reach and worthwhile. For example, “If I don’t have a voice, I can’t want to be a baritone.” The lack of self-knowledge is a constant source of frustration due to false expectations. And it’s a daily art to know myself: what I read on the internet, how I respond to WhatsApp messages, how much time I spend on a screen. The decisive factor is not the magnitude of the choice, but whether what I decide today brings me closer to the tomorrow I long for. Steps aimed at the goal.

Virtue and human excellence

Excellence is not measured in medals, but in virtues that are always dynamic.  The war is not won until the last battle.

A teacher taught me that “respect is what you have to have in order to achieve,” and it can be applied to any developing virtue.

Among the virtues that guide freedom and

Its development is made possible by:

• Sincerity, which helps us savor the truth, even when it hurts. A radical condition.  Do not confuse certainty with truth .
• Strength   and courage, which sustain us when the road becomes difficult and fatigue obscures our vision. When loneliness invades us…
• Humility, which reminds me that I’m not the center of attention and that I need others. I’m so close to myself that everything becomes confusing. There are people who know how to give their lives, but never ask for it. A friend used to call this “self-sufficient humility” with a certain irony …

These virtues don’t make headlines, but they are the ones that sustain the truth: the parent who listens before imposing, the student who admits a mistake, the person who dares to speak the truth, even if it upsets or hurts, but then heals…

Ultimately, freedom realized in daily behavior, measurable and quantifiable, reveals to us: not who I dream or fantasize about being, but who I truly am. Each decision shapes my true self. It’s not about rigid perfection, but about growing day by day from truth and love, until I become a gift for others.

Remember: “Respect is what you have to be able to achieve.” You can put any virtue you want here…

I leave you my gift for your patience in reading or listening to me.

When you look at me like that

I would kiss your eyes,

because in your eyes

the soul appears,

the soul that I would kiss

kissing your eyes

A pupil with a hint of a tear,

wet tear,

the soul peeking out.

The soul that I would kiss

Kissing your tear

And I look at you,

silent gaze,

without kissing

not even your eyes

nor your tear,

for fear of fogging up

the soul,

the soul that I would kiss

kissing that look

wet.

(Rosa Montenegro)