1001 people I met before the end of the world

The minute I saw a tiny man, wearing jeans and an Hugo Boss's tee, giving money away in a square full of poor (some even drunk after too many Aguardiente shots), I've came to a conclusion: that could only be Don Rigo. My eyes started to shine too much, since Meli, a friend I was visiting in Medellín, starred at me with a big smile. I was surprised for the first time in that country.

- Meli, is he really giving money away?, that's all I could ask her. She opened a big smile and said 'yes'.

My thoughts ran wild. Lost in my head, I thought about how that small village called Jardín, only two hours away from Medellín, was adorable; how I was having a good time with the friend I met 4 years before in LA, and how I was face to face with a great cover for a magazine such as 'Time': 'The comfortable life of Colombia's richest coffee producer'.

Rigo got in my life by chance: he is Marcela's dad. Marcela is Meli's BFF. Before we took the road to Jardín, Meli told me her father was a rich coffee producer.

- Ali is from Brazil, papa!, Marce said. A while before, she was on the phone trying to get him to memorize my name.

When we met, on a saturday he had 3 meetings, Rigo looked at me with such curiosity. He starred for a while and then asked if I wanted to visit his coffee plantation 10km away.

Before adventuring through the coffee plantation, we had drinks at a bar in the corner of the square. We met with 3 guys who looked like Don Rigo's security. One left to get the car while two others stood watching an old man getting closer.

- Sir, please help me, he said, with a sad voice, while holding a paper that looked like a bill.

Don Rigo looked at him, read the paper and gave him 10 thousand pesos. When he realized the old man needed more, he gave extra 50 thousand. The man thanked him almost crying. I was shocked again. I had never seen something like that. Don Rigo probably realized what I was thinking. He took his RayBans off, looked at me with warm eyes and made me feel like was worth:

- Listen, daughter: we take nothing from this life, he said. I smiled. Probably the biggest smile I gave to a stranger.

We got in the car and drove in the mountains. He pointed to each moutain saying: that is mine. I had a tour in his factory, met the workers and had time to watch a World Cup game.

Before going home, we climbed the biggest mountain, one we could see all the plantation, and he asked: 'How about the view?'. I heard nothing but the wind and I said: 'Amazing'