Come on, admit it. You've spent years doing everything right. You studied what you were supposed to study. A double degree (?). An impeccable resume. The job you wanted, the house you wanted, even the body you wanted. Every single thing, a checkbox. Every checkbox, ticked. Every ticked checkbox, a dose of pride that puffs up your chest a bit more. And yet, on any given Sunday of summer, sitting on your terrace with a cigarette in hand, the million-dollar question hits you: what now? Because it turns out the checklist is finished. And the strange thing is that you don't feel what you're supposed to feel. You don't feel fulfillment. You feel... empty. What is supposed to come next?

Have you ever felt vulnerable? Stop and think. Since we had our Nomba gathering a few days ago in Madrid with Pablo Gasull, I can't get the topic out of my head. Pablo completely dismantled that checklist logic. He spoke to us about the myth of the "self-made man": that postmodern ideal of the perfect person, who achieves, who conquers, who controls, who builds themselves alone. Everything is "self": self-sufficiency, autonomy, self-care... As if the maxim of not needing anything or anyone prevailed. What if I told you that all of that might fall short? What if I told you that the most important things in life are not achieved but received, and that it is better to arrive far and late than early and alone?

If you think about it, we don't choose our parents. Nor do we completely choose our friends (often we recognize them as friends when, in reality, they already were). Even love almost never starts as a calculated decision. It simply reaches us. It chooses us. But even being a father is not a goal that you conquer and that's it: one is a father forever, even if the child dies. And being a parent is a gift. There are things that do not work as a goal, or as something you conquer. They work as a gift. They are received. Inazio, a singer-songwriter from Pamplona, repeats this in his most underrated single, which is called Arroyo: everything is a gift, everything is a gift, everything is a gift...

That's why, instead of self-individualism, Pablo proposed community: the starting point is not the I, it is the we. We are already someone before we decide who we want to be. We come from a history, from a family, from bonds, from the concrete and conditioned circumstances of our own biography. It doesn't define us, but it conditions us. That's why it matters to know and embrace where you come from, whose child you are, who your role models are, what your roots are. The I is not built in solitude. It is built with others.

Pablo Gasull at Ediciones Encuentro in Madrid, during the Nomba meeting—pardon the redundancy.

What stirred me the most, however, was the topic of vulnerability. Pablo did not treat it as an accidental weakness, but as the condition of possibility (the essence, if I may) of the human being. To live is to live together. To exist is to coexist. And opening up to another (loving, trusting, asking for help) always involves a risk: the other can hurt you. Mmm, we don't like that as much. That is why vulnerability literally requires a leap of faith. To stop controlling, to stop hovering. Letting go, leaving be. What would you do if you weren't afraid?

Since we are talking about caring, let me tell you that this week a student sent us a photo that is spectacular. He got a gift for his wife, whose name is Mire, for her birthday, and by the way, for their sixth anniversary together. It might not seem like a big deal. But this is exactly what Pablo was talking about: love that is sustained not in the grand gesture, but in the small gifts on any given Tuesday. If you love your boyfriend, girlfriend, husband, or wife, give them Nomba as a gift.

Happy birthday, Mire. "I know you love to learn and discover, so here is a gift to keep doing so."

Precisely about care, although on another scale, was also the Great Thinkglao we held this month alongside our friends from Ongiving Solidarios: the Great Solidary Thinkglao in favor of Venezuela. The idea was born from a clear realization: we talk a lot about care in the abstract, but genuinely caring costs effort, and sometimes it literally costs money. We have set a goal to raise €50,000 for humanitarian aid in Venezuela, and so far the response from the Nomba community has been impressive. If you missed it or want to collaborate, you can see everything at this link.

This month I was also at Harvard. Yes, as if saying I was at the bakery or the supermarket. I went to Boston to record a new masterclass for El Viaje with Tyler VanderWeele, director of the Human Flourishing Program at Harvard. It was a privilege to hear him talk about human flourishing, meaning, and well-being from a perspective that blends science and humanities in a way I have rarely seen. We had a conversation about education, beauty, family, meaning, purpose, love... Tyler has only 5 degrees, 2 master's, and a doctorate, in addition to good humor and vital joy. In parallel, for Nomba, we have recorded new classes as well with Ed Brooks and Diego Garrocho. The classes will soon be available on the platform so you can keep enjoying and learning at your own pace this summer. Well, and for a lifetime.

Good old Tyler at Harvard. He doesn't look it in the photo, but he is 6'3" and, as I said, extremely approachable and cheerful.

We also had, this time away from the spotlight of big events, several direct gatherings between Nombas, people who meet in the community, who hang out on their own, who share a table and conversation without anyone organizing it for them from here. Sincerely, of everything we share in this newsletter, this is perhaps what makes me happiest. Because it means that what we were looking for from the beginning—community, connection, a place to feel at home—is actually happening, beyond us.

Ah, and I can't close July without stating the obvious: Spain, world champions. 1-0 against Argentina, goal by Ferrán in extra time. At TheNomba we are waiting to see Luis de la Fuente tattooed on Cucurella's arm. I'm sorry, che, but this time it was our turn. That said, let's be clear: we know who won the World Cup. What we still don't know, and it's been two months now, is where the f*** Curaçao is.

One last thing and I'll let you get back to enjoying your vermouth, I promise. This August, TheNomba does not stop. We are launching a challenge for the entire community to see who can make the most progress during the month. We will reward the three students who complete the most steps between August 1 and August 31. It doesn't matter what stage you are at or where you start: here, everyone begins with the same rules. The prize, for now, is a surprise. But we promise not to disappoint. In September we will announce the winners on the board and on social media.

And I'm not just telling you this for the prize. I'm telling you this because August, with everything it has of a pause, of the beach, and of family, is also the best month to contemplate the big things. Without the excuse of "I don't have time." So now you know: rest, enjoy, travel... but also save some time to keep moving forward. Otherwise, come September, as my father says, there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Are you in?

I hope you get some rest during the holidays.

See you soon.

See you the last Thursday of August!