I passed a few steps from your house, Lorenzo. I went to the hospital to bring comfort to Enzo, a friend who had heart surgery. A difficult intervention. At the entrance, a still young woman ran towards me. He held my hands in his, kissed them, then with tears in his eyes: «Pray for me, father, I have a tumor». A stab. Words of hope. Promise of prayers. A few steps away from her, her husband looks at her with so much affection and just as much fear. «Come on, let’s fight. Life is a battle, no one has the right to pull the oars in the boat. After you. The Lord does not abandon us” I manage to stammer. We leave each other.
I follow her with my eyes as she takes the exit. Life is sacred, it was given to us as a gift, we have the duty to love and cherish it. And the thought returns to you, Lorenzo. You were only 21 years old. A treacherous gunshot broke your heart. You had a clean criminal record. The investigators are led to exclude the trail that leads to the eternal and bloody wars of the Neapolitan Camorra. Apparently your killing is linked to an argument that broke out on a football pitch a few months ago.
A revenge, therefore. Served in cold blood, weeks later. The man with whom you argued was unable to swallow the bitter pill of a possible offense; who knows, an out of place word, an impulsive gesture. But who is he? Why did he feel the need to hit you in the back? Why didn’t even the ghost of the prison that awaits him stop him? You will be 21 forever. Goodbye, dreams of a better future, of a more stable and secure job, of a more beautiful home. Goodbye to your dear parents and friends. Your years stop here, a few hours before the start of this summer which appears to be torrid and suffocating. So he wanted a man who should have been your brother. Don Salvatore Cinque, your parish priest, cannot find peace, like the people of the neighborhood where you grew up. It’s true, we need more sports facilities and meeting places. It is true, Naples must be more generous and attentive to the neighborhoods at risk. It is necessary at all costs to prevent young people from being enchanted by this anomalous and illogical wave of violence which, like a bulldozer, destroys everything in its passage. I passed a few steps from your house, Lorenzo.
How many tears, how much anger, how much desperation, how much desire to kick a concrete wall. And the question that, in these cases, always accompanies us: “Why?”. Why did you do it brother murderer and coward? Why did you drag Lorenzo and his family, yourself and your family into this cold valley of death? Has the blood you shed put an end to your thirst for revenge? I’m sure you’re already cursing the moment you listened to the evil one who made fun of you. He deceived you. You let yourself be fooled. Where are you hiding now? How long can you do this? You know, it’s a matter of days, then the ordeal will begin for you and for those who love you.
Life, brothers, life. Let us be enchanted by life. Among the eternal beauties, she is the most beautiful. Among the truths, the truest. We only have one. A wonderful, unique, unrepeatable gift. An immense asset to be safeguarded, enhanced and promoted. Nobody has the right to offend her, everyone has the duty to protect her. Ours, that of our loved ones, but also that of those who hate us. I understand that between young people – we have all been young – an out of place word can escape, an unwanted look, a push. Better to pretend nothing happened, better to move on, return to one’s commitments and loved ones. However, it is necessary to dispel a misunderstanding into which many fall without realizing it. When you don’t take up the gauntlet of the challenge, when you don’t respond to an insult, when, like a reed, you bend to let the poisonous wind of a provocation pass, rest assured, boy, you are becoming a real man. Young people, don’t be fooled. Worse than evil there is only the possibility of confusing it with good. And remain prisoners of it.
