New Year Reflections. Let’s Value What We Have

By Irina Pino

HAVANA TIMES – My December 31st was crap. I didn’t leave the house. I sat and watched the end of a TV series. I had to cancel my plans of sharing the New Year with friends because of my accident, followed by the convalescence, which in my case, will be a long while.

Some of the scenes from the series Parenthood were the climax of a sadness that has endured many years, the memory of a united family; joyful events, normal Cuban family get-togethers, New Year’s dinners, my nieces and nephews playing, running all over the house, and my father asking for seconds…

None of this will ever happen again, my family has shattered, they now live in the US; my father died three years ago. There are only a couple of us left in Cuba. A chain with links that are impossible to recover.

I think we ask too much from life, although we almost never stop to think about the value of what we do have, about the importance of sharing joy in conversation, love; as well as fights with our loved ones and friends.

If we really think about it, our desires are based on material things: being successful and having money. And in reality, we lose the things we most need: company, living special and one-off moments.

Life’s unexpected twists and turns make me think about the fragile nature of being human, about how fleeting life truly is. A few days ago, there was a huge ruckus here outside my house, police cars, ambulances and a rescue brigade came. A boy had drowned. The doctor managed to resuscitate him for a few minutes, but he eventually passed away in the ambulance on the way to the hospital. He was only 22 years old.

What terrible pain his family must be feeling, who will never see his face again, never have him amongst them.

These tragedies often take place in coastal areas where people swim in the sea in defiance of stormy weather, it isn’t anything new. These are tragic events that happen as the result of the negligence people involved have. Maybe they are in the wrong place at the wrong time? Maybe it’s even karma?

I don’t know, but I will say again that we don’t appreciate the true value of existence. We are just passing through, yes, but we can be better, take positive actions, leave a legacy behind so that we are remembered. It’s sad to live without an objective.

Let me tell you the following: we have to look for useful alternatives to be happy. Art, in all its forms, feeds my soul. I can’t live without writing; I need to create my own reality (the other one).

Circumstances and chance are discreet conspirators, nevertheless, we humans should be prepared to get close to the people we love, to be in touch with ourselves and the universe, in spite of the difficulties we will have to face.