Who among us, as a child or teenager, hasn't dreamed of becoming a Formula 1 driver, an astronaut, a famous singer or a successful athlete?
I don't know what our peers dreamed of, but we boys had pretty clear ideas about who we wanted to be.
Today we are living the story of a boy who made that dream come true: not yet twenty years old, he won Formula 1 Grand Prixs at the wheel of a Mercedes.
Only I know how much I wished it could happen to me. But today I can live that dream through this boy from Bologna, with enthusiasm and without a trace of envy or jealousy.
It's as if Andrea Kimi Antonelli had also realized the dream of those of us, like me, who imagined one day sitting in a single-seater and competing in the most important championship in the world. In some ways, he has proven that those dreams weren't unattainable, and he brings a little bit of all of us to circuits around the world.
I don't think it matters which team you're affiliated with: this guy inspires universal sympathy. He may have had some luck, but above all, he's achieved what thousands of others would have desired.
I hope that today's boys and girls can still dream of becoming Formula 1 drivers, astronauts, artists, or great athletes. And that they can do so with the knowledge that those dreams, at least in part, are attainable. Just as they can be aspiring to become entrepreneurs, politicians, talented chefs, or simply great parents.
This is why I raise my voice of encouragement to today's youth: fight every day to improve. Because a "better world" doesn't come from protest alone, but from self-improvement, from setting an example, and from the ability to serve others.
