Since he was a child, Carlos Sabillon became obsessed with solving the problems of other people. His first philanthropic thoughts dealt with the people of his small and underdeveloped home country. He wanted to liberate them from poverty. Although poverty was endemic in Honduras, the idea of one day eliminating penury and destitution from that Central American country did not satisfy him. He wanted more. He wanted to solve the problems of the whole world.
Having such big goals drove him to place his faith on science. Carlos Sabillon thus put all of his time into studying. He studied everything that could be related to that goal, delving into economics, philosophy, law, history, international relations, business and political science. He obtained three undergraduate degrees, a masters and a PhD in half the normal time. Carlos would not spend time socializing, would not rest on weekends and would not take vacations. The young man was in a rush to acquire the scientific wisdom that would allow him to bring prosperity to all.
However, when he finished his PhD and fifth degree, he discovered the awful truth about economics. Dr. Sabillon had emphasized this field of knowledge because from the start it became evident that it was the key for the elimination of poverty. However, when he finished his doctorate in early 1990, he uncovered the horrendous veracity about this field. No economist in history had ever figured out the variables that cause economic growth. The nations that had attained fast growth and had overcome poverty had done it without a clear knowledge of how they got there. That is why economics is called “The Dismal Science”.
Finding out that truth made Dr. Sabillon fall into a deep depression. His whole life had been dedicated to learning the knowledge that would allow him to take his country and the world out of poverty and when he found out that it was not possible, his life became meaningless. He could no longer justify his existence. The truth about economics had destroyed his “raison d´être”.
Dr. Sabillon had studied in Switzerland thanks to a scholarship from the Swiss government and since he rarely socialized or partied, he had managed to save a third of his monthly stipend. By early 1990, he had accumulated 10,000 Swiss francs, which more or less equaled 10,000 US dollars.
At that moment, numerous wars raged throughout the world. Although he had never visited the countries suffering from those wars (in Sub-Saharan Africa, in Asia and in Latin America), Dr. Sabillon felt the pain of all those people. The stories in the media about the massacres in those nations had impacted him deeply.
Since Dr. Sabillon could no longer improve the living conditions of Hondurans and his life no longer had any meaning, he decided to donate all of his money to the Red Cross so that this organization, which is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, could use the money to help the victims of those wars.
Dr. Sabillon thus went to his bank and took out all of his savings, withdrawing the 10,000 francs. That was all he had and it was the largest amount of money he had ever had. Although Geneva is a small city and the university installations where he had studied were only a few blocks away from the headquarters of the Red Cross, he decided to give the money anonymously. He was too depressed to want to speak with anybody and just wanted to be alone.
He walked into the nearest bank and gave the bank account number of the Red Cross to the bank employee. With a subdued voice, Dr. Sabillon told the employee that he wanted to donate 10,000 francs to the Red Cross. The bank employee looked at him with bewildered eyes, undertook the financial operation and then he went back to his small dorm to mourn the death of his dream.
Somehow, the Red Cross found out who had made the donation and weeks later Dr. Sabillon received a letter. It is the one that follows.
--Red Cross Letter in original French--
