Fear is defined in the dictionary as a feeling of anxiety caused by the presence of real or imaginary danger. Also as a feeling of mistrust that makes you believe that the opposite of the desired event will happen.

Its effects can be very different. It paralyzes some people. It cancels out others. It depresses some and many anxieties. There is no doubt that it causes a lot of stress and the inability to see beyond the moment when you are facing what is causing the fear.

For weeks now, there is practically no city or person living in Ecuador who has not felt fear, but also despair.

The way of life or the way of danger? Potholes, attacks, lack of lighting and police condemn the residents of Cumbayá and Tumbaco

Tumbaco residents are asking for more police personnel and trucks to prevent the insecurity of the location

There are many reasons. There was no lack of encouraging news about the damage caused by the heavy and constant rains. Or ongoing criminal activity that has more than one member of each family sharing advice via social media or texting so that their loved ones take precautions and take care of themselves as best they can.

However, amidst this scenario of mistrust, there are behaviors that show that we are not alone and that we can support each other in the face of feelings of helplessness and loneliness that result from violence.

(…) In the midst of this scenario of mistrust, there are behaviors that show that we are not alone…

Two days before the Easter holidays, I attended a book launch and went to one of the valleys surrounding Quito at 8:30 p.m. There were very few people on the streets. It wasn’t just because of the rain and cold, but because there are routes that have been avoided for several weeks and have led those who have to cross them to try to go home early or stay at the homes of family and friends so they don’t have to travel through them after 11pm: 00 hours, due to the danger of attacks and express kidnappings.

Preventive detention for those allegedly involved in the kidnapping of a couple in Quito

Human remains were found on the Ruta Viva in Quito

But something happened that night that arose spontaneously and I think it did us a lot of good. The few vehicles that got out stayed in the group, trying not to fall too far behind us. At first I thought it was my imagination, but as it progressed, I realized it was true. We kind of followed each other, kept our distance in case the vehicle ran into an obstacle that would force it to maneuver. I noticed that we looked at each other and stopped so that no one was too far behind.

I don’t know who those companions were, for a little more than 30 minutes, but that gesture, I’m sure, gave us all peace.

Later, during the holidays, I read in a tweet that a person in Guayaquil thanked another vehicle for maneuvering her car and not getting robbed. It had video gestures and, of course, a striker.

These actions, which make us human, which make us human, are what we need most at this moment, because when we feel the greatest fear, the feeling of the hand of solidarity helps and saves us from unrest. And it also shows that there are ways to support each other, even if we’ve never met.

An outstretched hand, a smile, a phone ready to help when we see an attack, will make us believe again in this piece of the planet that Ecuador occupies and will give us light as we travel this path of so much darkness. (OR)