A Uruguayan named Jose #AtoZChallenge

Do you know the name, Jose Mujica?
Remember your answer.

He used to be a bad guy when he was young - a guerilla warfare fighter, he used to rob gun clubs, bad banks and corrupt businesses and give the money to the poor. He was shot multiple times and spent a total of 14 years in jail for his crimes during those years, including solitary imprisonment which broke him mentally - and transformed him.

Even after landing a honest job, as he turned 80, Jose Mujica still dutifully went to work every day though he never wore a tie and rarely tucked his shirt in, even during official meetings. Over the last few decades, when he was not at work, the vegetarian would grow flowers in his garden which he sold.

Do you know Jose Mujica?

You should. After all, he was the President of Uruguay between 2010 to 2015.

A President who donated 90% of his monthly $12,000 salary to charities, living off less than $1250 with his wife and two dogs, including his three-legged guard dog who fights with him for possession of the chair cushion. (That three legged dog forms 33% of the security of the President, the remaining 66% consisting of two police officers.)

Not quite as fancy as the White House now, is it?

A President who chose not to live in the palatial Presidential House and instead stayed back in the tiny, one-bedroom house of his wife beside the farm which receives water from the well and greets visitors with laundry strung outside the house.

A President who still drives his 30 year old car to work even today, even famously stopping to help hitch-hikers along the way.

At public hospitals, he waits for his turn like his fellow citizens.

He is the reason Uruguay was chosen as the 'Country of the Year' in 2013 by The Economist which valued 'virtue over impact'.

He is the man who helped the most liberal country in South America glide unscathed through the economic and political waves that hit South America, coming out with a comparatively better health economy and reducing the unemployment rate significantly.

Add to this a progressive nature which meant supporting same-sex marriages and being pro-abortion while also legalizing cannabis (he hates it himself) just so that the consumers in his country do not fall prey to the underground drug mafias that scarred the rest of South America.

Why I want you to remember Jose Mujica

In a series featuring everyday heroes instead of popular celebrities, Jose Mujica is the exception.
You do not need to agree with his politics but you need to admire a President who chooses to stay humble and live an austere life like his citizens. A man who sets a shining example of being 'one of the people' in ways few, if any, leaders in history ever have.

In a world which idolizes so many polarizing political leaders, why did we not hear more often of the man the media christened "the World's Humblest President?"

This is part of my #AtoZChallenge where I will be focusing on Real Life Heroes: Shining Examples of Kindness and Compassion. You can find other real-life heroes here.