Life hit them when they were not yet sufficiently prepared. For actress Ana Fernández it was the death of her partner, which she had to face when she was only 25 years old. “It really bothers you, because when you’re young this doesn’t cross your mind… But either you sink in or you try to learn from it and see that it’s part of life,” he confesses, recalling an episode that took him years to overcome.
Paralympic athlete and content creator Alberto Boniato has had to deal with his disability since he was a child, visible due to the prosthetic that replaces his right leg. “At 20 or 30 you understand that they’re watching you, but at eight you don’t know what’s happening,” he explains. It was his mother who found the key to best dealing with that exposure. “He told me: ‘They don’t look at your leg, they look at you because you’re beautiful’. And since then he has made humor a shield. “You have to know how to convert negative situations.”
Both Fernández and Boniato are examples of resilience, that quality that is needed to carry on when neither the head nor the body have the strength to continue. Both share a conversation with athlete Alex Roca and social educator Mari Carme Maza in the fifth chapter of the video podcast brave mindsa space reserved for people who contribute to transforming society thanks to their precious testimonies.
“What have you learned from your experiences?” Roca asks them. “There are things you never stop learning, something very important,” says Ana Fernández. Boniato, for his part, replies: “The secret is to be constant, have a good mentality, believe and be diligent in what you do.” And turning to the host of the conference he concludes: “That’s why you managed to do a marathon, no matter how hard it was.”
Ana Fernandez
Actress
“When you laugh at yourself, others don’t dare hurt you.”
From an early age she learned to have tools to fight bullying at school. However, nothing could prepare her for losing her partner at just 25 years old. And, despite the harsh trauma, he found the strength to continue with his prolific acting career.
Alberto Boniato
Paralympic athlete and content creator
“I have always believed in what I do to help others”
A malformation of the fibula forced his right leg to be amputated when he was a child. He grew up feeling different, but was able to find a way to communicate with the world in humor and sports. Now it is a reference on social networks. He participated in the Paralympic Games in Paris.
‘BRAVE MINDS’, TO OVERCOME IS TO LIVE
Communication is built with authenticity, intimacy, with the ability to inspire. With this premise, Allianz, Pódium Podcast and EL PAÍS have joined forces to create the video podcast brave mindsa space for reflection, learning, inclusion and exchange of experiences that helps people discover the inner strength needed to face challenges, grow in the face of adversity and live with courage. A project composed of 10 testimonies divided into five chapters, with the athlete Alex Roca and his wife, the social educator Mari Carme Maza, as guides and focused on concepts such as determination, purpose, courage, vision or resilience, going beyond protection and security to enter the field of inspiration and authenticity.
Alex Roca
At the age of six months he was diagnosed with encephalitis which caused cerebral palsy. The sequel: 76% physical disability. He grew up not knowing where his limits were and became an athlete. Among many other successes, he has completed five triathlons, one aquathlon, 11 half marathons and two marathons and, by bicycle, the Madrid-Lisbon Non Stop or walked the Camino de Santiago.
Mari Carmela Maza
He has personally experienced very difficult moments related to his mental health. A social educator, she met her husband today at a conference and since then they have never been separated. She acts as a translator for “the person who changed my entire life”.
