The story of Colombian children is a “wonderful manifesto that shows how to educate”. The professor. Alberto Villani, Head of General Pediatrics and Emergency Medicine at the Bambino Gesù Hospital in Rome Think with emotion the power of the little survivors who were alone for 40 days. But then the confrontation with Italian children, who are overprotected by their parents, immediately makes him serious: “Resilience also comes from the ability to overcome difficulties, but you can face them if you are brought up to do so.” Our boys on the other hand, they are abandoned in the middle of urban “forests” without knowing how to get along.
The hero dog that saved children in Colombia has gone missing and lost sight of Wilson in the jungle
Let’s start with the happy ending. How is it possible that they survived?
“First of all we have to say that this extraordinary event would have been impossible with children of a different nationality. These kids are local, they grew up in that environment so they know it. From an early age they are taught to live in hostile conditions, they recognize plants and everything that can serve as food. They know how to best manage natural resources and benefit from them in all situations.”
However, the oldest is only 13 years old.
“In these populations, a thirteen-year-old knows more than an adult, these are not our Italian “big babies” but people who have always been used to facing and overcoming difficulties. After all, this was also the case in Italy at the beginning of the last century: the older siblings were in fact the guardians of the younger ones. Again, it’s definitely an amazing story, as it borders on a miracle that they survived a plane crash; And it’s really extraordinary that they wandered in a forest for 40 days, but with these ethnic groups, knowing how to get by is the first lesson.”
It is even more difficult for children to survive in extreme conditions.
“Children are the weakest, especially the little ones: dehydration is a very big problem.” The girl must have been very good at taking care of the water supply, for example, finding the streams, the dew on the leaves. Let’s not forget that you can go for days without eating, but not without drinking. But it is even more surprising that the one-year-old made it, it is a miracle that he was saved, surely the thirteen-year-old must have given considerable care ».
What can be learned from this story?
“The importance of education, of rules, is obvious. In this population there is a true lesson, which is not to meet and satisfy needs, but to educate behaviors that guarantee survival. It is proof that this is the result of investing intelligently and virtuously in children. On the other hand, if you get used to just being content with anything, they are less reactive: resilience also comes from the ability to face difficulties and you can only face them if you are trained to do so.”
Are you saying that being protective is wrong?
“Today we’re talking about neurobehavioural disorders, but in this case there is actually evidence that children are extremely resilient: they just need to be educated to deal with different contexts, and the only way to do that is to educate people.” The 13-year-old girl knew how to get by. How many girls of the same age in Italy know how to buy and cook groceries?».
But in a city, how can you leave a little girl alone with the shopping?
“The shopping can be done with the parents. But then it is enough to teach the little ones to dress and wash themselves. Today the parental role is completely abandoned, absent. Being a parent means sharing experiences and teaching how to take care of yourself. In such a society, that role still exists.”
So who should raise them?
“Until the age of 35, a woman often never held a child in her arms. At school we don’t talk about raising children; Children don’t know what it means to have a brother and sister and to be caring. The only hope is the school: either a drastic reform will be implemented that will allow physical education, music, beauty and selflessness to be taught full-time, or it will all be useless ».
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