Letter from Jamil Chad to Messi: ‘Thank you’ for proving to us that humanity is art 18.12.2022 04h00

This is the online version of Jamil Chad’s newsletter sent yesterday (17). In the full bulletin, only subscribers, The columnist talks about the Qatari government attack during the World Cup to suppress criticism from international organizations. Would you like to receive the complete package with the main column and more information in your email next week? Click here and sign up.

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dear lion

In 2010, I wrote to Eduardo Galeano that in the Argentine team’s concentration in the South African Cup, his books are accessible to motivate players and create a devastating awareness that there is so much more to the pitch. than a game played

Upon learning of this, he replied:

“The best football book is one that players write with their feet. Since I was born on a wooden foot and didn’t know how to play well, I had no choice but to write about football. I just ask you to read it. Feel the joy as a tribute to the players and pass it on.”

An artist like very few in our Southern Cone, Galeano used to say that you’re a genius precisely because you don’t see yourself as a Messi. And this part of the magic of the world before your game was because you knew exactly how to deliver joy.

I confess that at that moment I doubted his enthusiasm for you. A cowardly sentiment anchored in that obtuse nationalism.

But over the years I’ve come to realize that Galeano was right. Apparent.

I discovered at home that you are not just Argentinian. To my children, you are Messi. And today I can say: lucky for Argentines.

When you hit the field this weekend, you’ll take on the reigning world champions, a solid team packed with talent. It will probably be your last game in the World Cup. And the immeasurable aspect of football will never promise you a title. The historian would tell us that life—and death—will be suspended on the planet this Sunday as the ball rolls.

But before it’s too late and the services in these new football cathedrals are over, I’m sending you this letter as a way to thank you. A gratitude for making so many children – and adults – around the world feel we have a right to dream.

Thank you for letting us fearlessly say that life is a dream. A dream in every surprising offer, every unlikely goal, and every magical pass. In the words of Nelson Rodrigues, other players make football an imitation of life. You really live.

In 1983, Carlos Drummond de Andrade wrote, “If there is a God who regulates football, God is above all ironic and ridiculous, and Garrincha was one of his delegates responsible for making fun of everything and everyone in stadiums.”

“But because he was also a cruel God, it took away the stunning Garrincha’s ability to perceive his status as a divine agent. He was a poor little mortal who helped elevate the sorrow of an entire country. The worst part was: Sadness returns and another No Garrincha. We need a new one to feed our dream”.

The so-called “dream-feeding new” has emerged, this time on the other side of the border. Also in a country full of challenges, but turned into a tango syncope.

When I see the illusion you create in distant languages, other cultures, hostile ideologies, and conflicting religions, I remember the impact football can have and what an artist’s role is beyond the pitch: to confirm the inevitable truth. The fantasy in our life is not a luxury, it is our food.

Under your feet, fans around the world transcend the lines artificially drawn on the planet, manipulated nationalisms and take on your shirt. Some wear formal brand clothes, proudly dressed. Others, such as in Afghanistan, write their names on plastic bags and magically turn them into capes that are worn with pride.

They reflect the fact that humanity exists only when art produces, shares, feels, lives and applauds, in every smile and sparkling eyes.

thanks lion

Jamil

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