Today, Pasquale Pes turns 80.
He is not only one of the longest-living Italians in Kenya, but also one of those who deserve to be celebrated publicly.
This is especially true because of a curious fact that belongs to people who have a special aura: the more he tried to avoid the spotlight, popularity and the limelight throughout his life, the more he was called upon to stand alongside those who aspired to the stage, success and personal recognition.
Not only that, he earned esteem (and even envy, as in the worst inclinations of certain compatriots) that he did not buy at the markets of flattery, nor did he receive for personal gain. With naturalness, style and discretion, he has dealt with politicians, ecclesiastical figures, entrepreneurs and famous people of all kinds, offering his calmness, his moderation and his example to those who were in too much of a hurry to seek something that perhaps does not exist.
It is often said that ‘his life could be a film’, but in Pasquale's case, it has already become a published novel (Fermarsi in tempo) which has also been quite successful (but he would never tell you that...) and now, yes, a feature film could be made from that book.
It is the long story of a boy born into poverty, raised with important values and an iron will, who made a name for himself without any help from above or from high places, always convinced that he could give back a little of what was not luck but ability and intuition.
He has passed it on through the values of sport to young footballers in Rome, Perugia and the Italian youth national teams, he has given it to friends who needed it at the time, and now he is giving it to the street kids at the football academy in Malindi.
Because for some things you stop in time, but for those that speak to the heart, eighty years are just a stage in a beautiful, endless journey.
As they say in Kenya, ‘maisha marefu, mzee’.
Long, long life to Pasquale Pes.