A continuación, los relatos ganadores en cada nivel
LEVEL 1
ACAPULCO, 1939
I had lost track of time. I had no idea of how many hours I had spent leaning over that mesmerizing shelf. The sign read “photography & arts,” but those words meant “passion” for me. I didn’t notice the presence of a man across the local library.-You like it?- I didn’t realize he was talking to me. – Yes, you, the girl with the braids.- Do you like the book?
-Y-yes- The word got stuck in my throat – Who are you?
-I am an artist from the streets, or, more vulgarly said, a photographer.
-Oh! Could you teach me? – I felt the cheek turn bright red – oh sorry, how rude, I didn’t mean to…
-I could teach you, and I will. My name ‘s Vázquez.
…
I heard my steps echo in the empty street. It was midnight, and I had just hopped out of my train all the way from Acañulco, to where I was now, New York City. The rain was pouring, and it matched how I felt inside: flustered and misunderstood.
My dear hometown had been devastated by an earthquake, strong enough to destroy my family’s house, and my mom had sent me to find a job in North America. It was, in my opinion, crazy to think that an 18-year-old woman could find a decent job that could pay rent in New York. It was the fifties and the best job I could find would probably be a waitress.
I saw a man at the end of the street. At first I got scared, he could be a criminal, a kidnapper, or God knows what that is still like a statue sitting at the end of a creepy street in the middle of New York. Then, I saw he was holding a camera. I exhaled the air that my poor lungs were holding.
-What’s wrong young lady? – I wiped my tears nervously. I had forgotten about them.
-Oh, nothing important. Are you a photographer?
-I am.
-I am too.
He took a look at my work.
-I know someone that’s going to be more than happy to hire you. My name ‘s Jan.
…
-So, how’s Valeria doing?- the nurse used the tone and fake smile you use to talk to helpless patients.
Valeria, an old woman on a rocking chair, was looking through the window, playing with the golden ring she had on her right hand. It said “Valeria Gómez
-Well,- A woman started talking. Suddenly her phone rang. – Fernando, could you tell the nurse how granny has been doing?
Fernando, a little boy, was hiding behind her mom’s legs.
-OK…
The woman went outside.
-Well, she’s not talking much, and she spends her days looking out the window smiling.
-Oh, honey, that’s absolutely normal, that’s a normal Alzeimer’s symptom.
-Sometimes, I wonder, what is she thinking about?
-Well, she’s probably remembering the most unforgettable memories of her life.
Emma Pérez Simón
LEVEL 2
YOU DON’T LIVE TWICE
You only live once is something you have probably heard lots of times. Everyone says it but, do you really know what it means? Neither you nor me really knows what it means. We are all going to die, soon or in sixty years but we are all going to die. A human normally lives something like 86 years, which is not that much.
Now we are teenagers, we haven’t lived anything, we have all our life coming. Although we are young, this stage of our life is important and will determine our life. We are going to make mistakes but also we are going to learn, we only live once. We shouldn’t care about people’s opinion, or about what it will “cost” us. We want everyone to love us but for that, we probably will lose lots of experiences and we will stop doing things that we really want to do. You only live once.
Does it really matter that much? Some people don’t do the things that they want to because they are scared, not just only of what people say but also of their future. Life is short, there is a future for everyone and it doesn’t matter if your future comes one, two or ten years after. In return you’ll be happier and you will live a different future, with experiences.
You only live once, do not take into account what people say about you, about your body, about your decisions, about anything. You are the one that decides because you only live once, you are a teen only once, you are a kid only once, you have that opportunity only once, so don’t miss it. Don’t miss anything. It’s not worth it.
Please go to that party, put that dress on, go to that school trip, make that decision, make it. It may go wrong, but you will learn from that, you will make it better next time. It is worth it. Because you only live once.
Leire Vera Ilzarbe
LEVEL 3
YOU’RE ON YOUR OWN, KID
Sometimes we let the years pass us by without us passing through the years. We make a routine to follow, we pursue dreams imposed by society forgetting how ephemeral we are, long story short, you only live once, do not waste time on trivialities.
It’s not about living being fearless, it’s about living in the full sense of the word. We ignore the brevity of our lives, I mean, we’re nothing else but a flicker, we’re a spark in the eternity, like a timed breadth in a timeless world. We should enjoy the whole ride, with its ups and its downs, because living the life you want should be our main goal to reach.
With YOLO echoing in our hearts with a fierce urgency we’re reminded that our life’s aim is about the wrong and learn, trip and be tall again. It is about accepting the rose and its thorns, it’s about chasing dreams with reckless abandon. You’re on your own and that isn’t a bad thing, it means you’re free to make your own decisions, to take every part of yourself and transform, to embrace all the possibilities, to jump then fall.
YOLO is about making a change, no matter how small, in people’s life, whether it is a kind gesture or spending your time being an altruist. Don’t you take for granted the time you were given.
Let’s raise our glasses to the audacity of YOLO, the beauty of the impermanence and the pleasure of living with no regrets. So, seize the day, carpe diem, like the moment and taste it, mess it up and then fix it, fall in love with life, Everything you lose is a step you take.
The thrill of the unknown is the cone of our existence. There’s a whole world out there, waiting for you, you might be scared but you’ll be fine, that’s an oath I will not break. Live your own way, you’re own your own, kid… you always have been.
Ana Alba Gómez Pinto
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