We want to think of that more excellent way by ourselves. We want the accolade and recognition. We want to be important. If we don’t get that satisfaction, look out, folks… because here come trouble!!!

In a cooperative, not all can be chiefs. Logic, combined with a spirit of fellowship and cooperation, should rule any decision making process. Basic common sense is synonymous with “that which fits the best”.

For some obscure reason, some of us tend to storm out of a volunteer project after deciding that all the other volunteers are not good enough to tolerate. This is often as a result of heated arguments with others, casting insults or "backbiting the project manager, and visiting and getting “insight” from a disgruntled someone who had quit for similar reasons another time earlier.

There's a dynamic word that I like to read in print… it conveys the idea of taking a long strand of rope and making a ball so intertwined that it is impossible to undo. That word is “BOCHINCHE”. This word exemplifies much more than just mere gossip or a scandal, it actually seeks to destroy harmony.

The spirit of the "bochinche" will not abide by any rules of harmony and fair play. It's a dark lord who thrives in creating discord among peers and rejoices when the “poop has hit the fan" ...the fan that fans everyone else, that is.

Scientific research has demonstrated that biases thought to be absent or extinguished in our minds remain as "mental residue" in most of us. Boricuas can deliberately work without rancor and be consciously committed to equality in rights and priviledge, yet still possess hidden negative prejudices or stereotypical fallacies. So even when we think we see and treat people as equals, hidden biases may still influence our perceptions and actions.

Intrinsic knowledge of one's self breeds ways to promote respect and understanding among ourselves and offers opportunities to discuss how intolerance, wherever it exists and for whatever reason, can be “unlearned” through further education, inclusion and example. Thus, "a cord of three strands is not easily broken."

So... can we get along? WILL WE get along? It all depends on how many times we can forgive our friends. How about 490 times? For each person... in one lifetime.

"Fools won't take advice, but the  smart will listen." (Proverbs 12:15