Just when I thought all hope was lost. Just as I heard the dark words of Dante’s Inferno in the distant ruminations of my memory—Abandon All Hope ye Who Enter Here, I remembered that it is always darkest before the dawn. Fortunately, I came across a small group of folks tonight. I also came across the somewhat pleasant results of an election several days ago. All in all, this week’s sentiment that started off so awful and started off so unpleasantly and had the nascent visages of a tirade, have lessened. Those feelings have lessened, but only slightly-only ever so slightlybecause the words I’m about to speak must be spoken. No matter how painful. But these thorns have at the very least given way to the slightest fragrance of a rose.
At Monday’s Chamber of Commerce mixer, which I was reluctant to attend if only because of the sentiment I spoke about earlier, I was pleasantly surprised by the positive mood and feeling that perhaps we can turn a corner. Someone gave a speech at the mixer and rightly asked, “Why do we live here? Why do we live in Española? It is because we love it here,” he said. We choose to love and live here and that is why it pained me so much to read in NewsBreak that Española made the news yet again. In its annual ranking of worst cities in which to live, we made the top of the list for the state of New Mexico. Using data from the Census Bureau, FBI and the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention, researchers compile statistics to determine poverty rates, crime, joblessness, poor health outcomes and limited access to essential services. As we know, New Mexico continuously ranks at the very bottom of such outcomes on a national level. This means that, conceivably, using the information generated from these reports, Española, may very well be the worst city in America.
Take a second to let that sink in.
And before any of our surrounding communities or distant cities even within the state of New Mexico say “typical”, the outcomes are not any better for you, for us. These statistics point to a series of bad decisions and poor leadership; not judgments on who we are or how we choose to live. It’s not a criticism about our traditions or the reasons we choose to live here. Many people I know feel safe enough to keep their doors unlocked. Everyone I know would give the shirt off their backs to help anyone who needs it and I haven’t encountered people more loving or willing to help than those in our Valley. Yet these are simple, objective pieces of information used to make cold hard deductions about our opportunities, our health, education and economic outcomes. We cannot afford to ignore them. If we do, we have only ourselves to blame for not getting ahead and for repeating toxic cycles of dysfunction.
What do elections have to do with constantly ranking last, you may ask? How can we change our thinking to get ahead? How is it that the people we trust the most keep us stuck in the stone ages?
Over the next series of my columns articles, I will give harsh examples and color to the reasons I think we systematically sabotage our chances and rank worst of the worst. I welcome your educated guesses and analysis, so please feel free to tell me.
Last month I visited Mexico City for the first time. Wow. What eye-opening conversations about our culture, our language and our way of life in this city of 24 million people, 1,500 miles and another world away. I say “our” because we are all Spanish speaking, religion-induced people who believe in God, obedience and a patriarchal system of obedience. If you think you are exempt from this thought process, think again. But these are only part of the puzzle. Life, love, and a feeling of belonging to the land (terroir) make us who we are. It makes us reluctant to move. It makes us reluctant to change. It makes us loyal, tribal, and it makes us blind.
One of the many lessons that Dante teaches in the Inferno is that the direct path toward a better life is never possible. The fears and weights of the world always drive us back. When he begins his journey toward paradise, he is turned back by a lion, a leopard and a she-wolf. He cannot climb the easy path. In order to see the light of paradise, he must first go down into the darkness. Dante tells us that before reaching glory, we must first be baptized by the fire of Hell. The same holds true for the future of our city. Just remember, It is always darkest before the dawn.
Javier Sánchez is the former mayor of the City of Española, NM, and the co-owner of La Cocina New Mexican Restaurant.