27.4.10

MODERN TROUBADOURS halloffame: ELI BRAVO


ELI BRAVO ://BIOGRAPHY
BY ALFONSO CORONA AND ISA TRAVERSO BURGER

Eli Bravo began his media journey in his country, Venezuela, via TV and radio, earning national awards for his talent. Then, in Miami, he became the face of People and Arts, thanks to Discovery Communications and the BBC. After his success in TV, radio and print -with 4 books under his penmanship- Eli takes it easy but continues to broadcast and write. Eli, who finds himself at the best stage in his life yet, is clearly spiritual, a bit bohemian, and always has a smile impregnated with humbleness. He admires people who take time off from their professional life and is also a proud Boy Scout. His laugh resembles a machine gun in full effect.

ELI BRAVO ://INNERVIEW
What are you doing tomorrow?
I don’t know. I try to think of tomorrow as a promise, not a fact; the only thing we have is today and now. I try not to live in the past or the future. I will plan some stuff like go ahead and begin writing my weekly newspaper article (published every Saturday in El Universal, Caracas), so I can spend more time with Isabel (daughter); I have to plan my radio program, and you know what? I would really like to begin reading Thomas Friedman’s book, The World Is Flat... (Pause) So, I would say I am being very ambitious for tomorrow. (Laughs)

An anecdote that really had an effect in your life was:
My sailing trip was one of the most incredible things in my life. I have always liked separating myself from work for some time; I think it’s important when you have a good job to have the sensation that you can leave that, and you don’t lose your life, that you have another life that is more important. Everyone needs time to do what makes him or her happy. In my case, this trip was intense. It was in April 11, 2002 as I was going through a divorce, leaving my job at People and Arts, and coincidentally, it was the day of the coup d’etat in Caracas. My phone was ringing off the hook; my journalist side was telling me, “You can’t leave now, are you crazy?” But my adventurer side was asking me to go. So I weighed anchor with my brother, who just stayed for 5 days (Laughs). I spent 5 months sailing by myself learning how to enjoy solitude and achieving a dream I had since childhood, which was to sail. It was excellent to cure the scars of a divorce although I get really seasick, and I got very seasick; plus my biggest phobia is sharks (Laughs). So needless to say, it was miserable and dangerous sometimes, but I had a lot of fun and my life changed. It connected me to my actual wife who was living in Miami, so I had to come back to Miami. (Laughs).

As a person, how did this affect your evolution?
I learned that the world is not how we think. One time, I was in a beautiful island all by myself and I caught myself thinking about the past, what I had gone through, everything that I lived in Caracas, etc. The mind is deceitful. And so, I learned that I was carrying this baggage, very unnecessary at this gorgeous place I was. It made no sense to relive that, then. Like Buddhism, I realized that we build the world with our thoughts; you get so involved in a specific thought that you begin to see things the way your mind is filtering it instead of how they are. This journey helped me to be more balanced, and regard all the achievements as secondary.

What is your definition of ‘fun’?
Be outdoors...Read and write... I like to write for me. Also, I really like to travel and be outside of an office.
Right now, it’s a lot of fun to be with Gaby (his wife) and Isabel (his 1-year old daughter)..

What do you write?
I have two storybooks and two opinion chronicles. I also have a newspaper column every Saturday in El Universal - a national Venezuelan newspaper-. Now, I’m writing a novel. One always finds time for everything except for what one really is interested in.

What do you enjoy the least?
Obligatory things... Pay bills, taxes, meet with accountants, and all legal paperwork. It’s really tough for me but I have managed to discipline myself to achieve it. I also dislike being where I don’t want to be and dealing with people that I’m not fond of... (laughs).

What do you love?
Life and all it has to offer... To feel alive, not to cling because it can disappear, but love life and enjoy it.

What do you hate?
Intolerance in all its manifestations. Dogmatism. Imposing a view and not respect the rest of the people.

If you were not a journalist, you would be...
An actor. I admire talents such as Sean Penn for example. I have always been attracted to acting but my father was horrified about me getting involved in drama. I still think that somehow, a journalist or TV personality has to act even as he is genuine and authentic.

If you could chose a mix of three people, who would you say?
Francisco De Miranda, The Buddha and Julio Cortázar. I did not include any women (reflecting)...Well, next time.

Which was your most important professional moment:
I think that it was while I was in Mexico. They called me to attend the casting for People and Arts, and I was chosen. I really enjoyed it deeply and learned so much, and as time passed I started taking it easy and not get frustrated when things didn’t go the way I wanted.

Any vice?
My fingernails, I bite them. I have tried stopping...(thinks) Maybe when I’m in my 50’s I’ll quit (laughs).

Do you walk or fly?
I Fly

Alone or accompanied?
Accompanied

Answer the following:
Life is: A Marvelous illusion
Power is: An insatiable lover. It gives you pleasure, it sucks you, it uses you. It’s like in the Lord of the Rings, power is like the ring, it owns you even while you think you own it.
Art is: It’s to see the world through the eyes of someone else. It’s a window. It can be non-verbal but it will enlighten you.
Money is: It’s great when you have it, but alas it’s an illusion. The idea that it gives you freedom is a lie; you are free when you don’t need it. If you do, you are a slave.
Sex is: Fundamental energy, the basic one. The initial flame.
Love is: The final flame; the max. The one that burns and transforms you, like a halo that covers you and changes everything.

Do you think we reach a professional destination?
I don’t know. Good question. You have to have goals because it motivates you. There may be a moment in which you find yourself saying, “I’m going to quit doing this and do such instead. I achieved it, I obtained this and that, and now I want to explore something else.” Your professional life reaches a balance. There are things that will not happen and one must resign from those dreams, not get frustrated or obsessed.
Life is like a sail; you may have a plan, and want to go straight to a destination, but then the wind changes and you reach your target by shifting directions, slowing down, etc. What matters is that you enjoy the trip navigating.

What would you tell God if you met him?
Thank you for this life I have the privilege of enjoying. I don’t ask him for anything. I think God is everywhere; I can see him daily in everyday stuff.

A place that marked you:
South East Asia really impacted me. I lived the cultural shock in 1994, amazing. When I was 14 I went to Zimbabwe with the Boy Scouts; it was beautiful, but at 14, it was more an adventure. I didn’t understand the dimension. I dream about going back to Asia; I’m dying to visit China.

Any mistakes?
Many. I have made mistakes, mostly in love. I think I wasn’t being honest or perhaps I didn’t discover my feelings; not to say it, when you love someone, is very sad.

A dream that you have to achieve...
A lot. Everything. I want to be able to finish my novel and feel happy with the result. I want to see Isabel grow up. I want to take a vacation with her and Gaby, look at the world, go to the Pacific. It’s not true that you don’t have time to take a trip; if you don’t have time for yourself, what do you have time for? People postpone their vacations not knowing if they will die tomorrow. It’s important to know that you can take time off, just plan ahead, you always can.

Do you think we reach a professional destination?
I don’t know. Good question. You have to have goals because it motivates you. There may be a moment in which you find yourself saying, “I’m going to quit doing this and do such instead. I achieved it, I obtained this and that, and now I want to explore something else.” Your professional life reaches a balance. There are things that will not happen and one must resign from those dreams, not get frustrated or obsessed.
Life is like a sail; you may have a plan, and want to go straight to a destination, but then the wind changes and you reach your target by shifting directions, slowing down, etc. What matters is that you enjoy the trip navigating.