IT IS NEVER BY CHANCE

Letters of Note recoge misivas cotidianamente extraordinarias, tan inspiradoras que Jamie Byng, CEO de Canongate, decidió recoger esa idea en su proyecto Letters Live. De todas las cartas que leí, esta que transcribo líneas abajo, me impresionó sobremanera. Su autor, Luz Long, era un atleta alemán que, en 1936 y representando a su país en los JJ. OO. que se celebraban en Berlín bajo la atenta mirada hitleriana, fue capaz de pensar por él mismo, decidir por él mismo, posicionarse de manera clara ante una situación social e histórica indamisible y confraternizar con Jessie Owens, a quien aconsejó en la pista y felicitó tras su triunfo. De esa relación nació un amistad que llevaría a Owens a ser el padrino en la boda de su rival olímpico y, a Long, a escribirle esta carta mientras servía en el ejercito durante la Segunda guerra mundial:

I am here, Jesse, where it seems there is only the dry sand and the wet blood. I do not fear so much for myself, my friend Jesse, I fear for my woman who is home, and my young son Karl, who has never really known his father. 

My heart tells me, if I be honest with you, that this is the last letter I shall ever write. If it is so, I ask you something. It is a something so very important to me. It is you go to Germany when this war done, someday find my Karl, and tell him about his father. Tell him, Jesse, what times were like when we not separated by war. I am saying—tell him how things can be between men on this earth. 

If you do this something for me, this thing that I need the most to know will be done, I do something for you, now. I tell you something I know you want to hear. And it is true. 

That hour in Berlin when I first spoke to you, when you had your knee upon the ground, I knew that you were in prayer. 

Then I not know how I know. Now I do. I know it is never by chance that we come together. I come to you that hour in 1936 for purpose more than der Berliner Olympiade.

And you, I believe, will read this letter, while it should not be possible to reach you ever, for purpose more even than our friendship. 

I believe this shall come about because I think now that God will make it come about. This is what I have to tell you, Jesse. 

I think I might believe in God. 

And I pray to him that, even while it should not be possible for this to reach you ever, these words I write will still be read by you.
Your brother,
Luz

Tal y como presentía Long, este encontró la muerte lejos de casa y, tal y como probablemente sabía, Owens cumplió su parte. Porque, como el alemán escribió en la que debió ser una de sus últimas cartas, no es casualidad que uno se cruce con ciertas personas y nazcan árboles fuertes de esa unión.