(Image from: http://despegoenprimera.blogspot.com.uy/2009/11/pasaporte-de-la-comunidad-andina-valido.html)
It must be very difficult to make the decision to leave. Put three stuffs and two memories in a suitcase, say goodbye to the people you love and take a journey that is tiresome and, at times, eternal.
It is very difficult to remain between borders, going hungry, living with fear.
Everything represents a deficit. But when it comes to choosing what is best, exile is usually the triumphant option. For years I heard that common place that says something like who leaves their country without fighting a coward, and nothing further from reality.
Last week I started a long, backpacking trip, in order to get to know a little bit about other countries. The reaction of the people was the same as when someone leaves the country. We are accustomed to dismiss those who, out of necessity or out of boredom, decide to leave the country and go away wheezing away from home.
I could also observe on the border the despair and despair of people who, without a bolivar in their pocket, were about to cross the border that separates us from the Carioca giant. From hundreds, even thousands, Venezuelans strive to cross borders (both with Brazil, Santa Elena de Uairén, and San Antonio del Táchira) no matter how much it takes.
The situation in the borders is a disaster, Venezuelans sleep on the floor, spend days without eating and without bathing; and, when obtaining permission, many remain in a kind of limbo because they do not have enough money to continue the path or retrace it.
People, desperate, trust in every paradisiacal promise they make, and without sitting down to think they embark on an adventure that can be costly.
On the border you see everything from barefoot children to grandparents enduring hours of sun and cold nights. Many people put their hopes in Boa Vista: find a job, settle down, take their entire family. But the truth is that, without an established plan, sufficient money and adequate preparation, you can get to spend a lot of work.
The vast majority of Venezuelans do not deserve to go through situations like these. The exodus has risen to such a magnitude that more than four million Venezuelans are estimated outside the country; Venezuelans who represent an immense intellectual capital, with tremendous skills and, most importantly, are our fellow citizens.
Venezuela suffers one of the largest brain drain in history, a sustained emigration that far exceeds what it received on previous occasions.
I remember when my grandfather told me about his trip, before arriving in Venezuela. He used to tell me that all Italians, Portuguese, Spaniards and a couple of Germans spoke of the paradise that Venezuela would be to them fleeing a war. And he fulfilled them. Unfortunately, many have to repeat the history of grandparents and be immigrants.