Impossible to quantify the value of human lives lost by Covid-19

Any life is valuable and each of those that have been lost during the Covid-19 pandemic should hurt us, especially those of those people we knew and were close to.

Around the world, SARS-CoV-2 has killed men and women who were in their most productive years, generating wealth for themselves and their communities and, in doing so, benefiting many people, some thousands, others a few, but at the end of the day improving the living conditions of their peers.

Intellectuals, artists, writers, composers, performers and actors have also died who when they disappeared they stopped producing ideas, works of art, novels, poems, music or that we will never hear them sing, act, direct an orchestra or interpret a song or song. an operatic aria. His disappearance represents a great loss impossible to quantify for universal culture and, of course, Mexican.

Let us remember some Mexicans who succumbed to Covid in 2020 and what their loss represents. He presented them in order of his paternal surname.

Sandro Cohen. Poet, storyteller, essayist, editor and American university professor who at the age of 29 decided to become a naturalized Mexican. He died at the age of 67 and his best known book is Writing without pain, a study required by those who want to write better.

Oscar Chávez. Singer-songwriter, troubadour, poet, social activist and actor. Despite his 85 years he was still active and when he spoke he spoke for many. You could not agree with his political positions, but that was not an impediment to appreciate his great talent and creativity.

Manuel Felguérez was still active at 91 years old and in his painting and sculpture workshop he worked seven hours a day. An abstract artist, all his life he experimented and expressed himself with new techniques. Its museum in Zacatecas is a must for art lovers.

José Kuri Harfush. Entrepreneur who created jobs and wealth by founding several companies. When he died at the age of 70, he was an alternate director of Grupo Financiero Inbursa and proprietary director of Grupo Carso.

Armando Manzanero. The last great romantic composer of our country who at 86 years of age was still singing, composing and presiding over the Society of Authors and Composers of Mexico. How many songs that were waiting to be written went with him?

Luis Enrique Mercado Sánchez. When he died at the age of 69, he was director of Grupo Imagen de Zacatecas, the main media consortium in that state. From 1988 to 2008, he was the founding director of the newspaper El Economista. It was my privilege to have him as a commentator on Grupo Fórmula for almost 20 years.

Yoshio (Gustavo Nakatani Ávila). Singer who at 70 kept his great voice and delighted us with his songs. Who does not continue to be moved to hear him sing Owner of Nothing, How are you doing without me or Lie? When he died, he and Óscar Chávez planned to make a joint recording.

Jaime Ruiz Sacristán. An entrepreneur who also generated thousands of jobs, wealth and taxes for the treasury. He founded Banco Ve por Más (B × +), was president of the Association of Banks of Mexico (ABM) and, when he died at age 70, he was president of the Mexican Stock Exchange.

The list is endless but the space in this column does not give for more.

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