It’s been a little over 40 months since I’ve lived with my entire family outside our beloved country. During that time, we’ve lived in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and, most recently, in Bogotá, Colombia.

In this regard, several events (family, academic, work, among others) influenced us to return to Lima after almost a year for a total of 10 days. Since three of our five family members were traveling together, we decided to rent a car. These were different experiences that, over the last few days, have come together to allow us to write and share this article.

The first event-meeting I attended was the University of Piura’s 2025 PAD Alumni Annual Meeting, which had the theme “Leading in an Uncertain World,” keynote addresses on navigating a challenging local and global environment. All the presentations and speakers provided many lessons; but I will focus on what journalist Fernando del Rincón commented on institutionalization. He proposes various alternative solutions, but all stem from the same origin: the family, the basic cell of society.

The second event-gathering is associated with a family theme. My older brother was turning 60 and held an intimate celebration, attended by my mother, his in-laws, his sister-in-law and family, us, his two brothers and their families, and his best friend, who came from the US with his wife and three children. However, the most moving part of the gathering were the improvised but authentic words of Rodrigo, the birthday boy’s son (we didn’t film him!), but it went something like this: thank you for being the guide for my sisters and me. We have had and continue to have disagreements, but when I get married and start a family, I want it to be like the one you lead together with my mother. Thank you for giving us principles and values. Wow! I said to myself: mission accomplished, brother.

In that sense, these events, like taking time to spend with the brothers and sisters life has given me—friends from school, university, and graduate school—make me realize that in our Peru there are good, upright people who have formed families and are pushing forward in the same direction. Although I have to admit that we also experience last-minute cancellations, both in work and personal meetings, despite having scheduled them weeks in advance.

Finally, one experience that has left a lasting impression on me is driving a car again in Lima, after almost 40 months. I have to admit I’d forgotten how aggressive our city can be: changing lanes without warning, making improper turns, running red lights, disrespecting pedestrians, among other things. Jokingly, I thought they must be colorblind. And one that I think unfortunately characterizes us in Latin America: honking the horn for any reason.

These events, in general, lead me to believe that things have to improve, only if all of us, from our position within our families (father, mother, son, brother, etc.), strive to live consistently and daily with values and principles based on truth, justice, charity, and peace. Here’s an invocation: Let’s not normalize things that are wrong; let’s do the opposite.

Now, I will share with you two phrases related to the topic, confident that they will help us all reflect on the matter.

“The family is the place where people first learn the values that guide them throughout their lives,” Saint John Paul II.

“Three words that should be kept in the home and always said: Excuse me, Thank you, Sorry,” Pope Francis.

To conclude this article, I invite you to build a better society, with values and principles learned at home. Only then will we have a better country, where we respect institutions and thus leave our contribution for future generations. Remember: Yes, we can! Yes we can! Yes we can!… Let’s keep rowing against the current!