Everyone knows that when it comes to weddings, the bride’s grown always has to be the most beautiful. That is why it is the tradition in many countries for the guests never to wear white dresses or light colors, so as not to overshadow the bride.
Louis is a man of over 60 who lives on my block. Although he has always looked too sad for words, we got along just fine.
I’ve heard tons of complaints about Internet use in our country but I’d never experienced it firsthand. Thanks to a friend, every two or three days I’d always been able to open my mail as well as access news from around the world.
The film “A Girlfriend for David” ends with a backlit atmosphere and the masterful voice of the great Elena Burke performing the song “Love Me as I Am”. by Pablo Milanes. This is one of the most popular Cuban films of all time…and one of my favorites.
Over the past end of the year school break that children typically enjoy, I witnessed a sad experience. While playing with my children at a Recreational Park, the one most liked by the hordes of kids in my city of Guantanamo, a too-young mother was beating her daughter, who couldn’t have been more than two years old.
The news spread like wildfire through the neighborhood. I was awakened by the phone. It was my cousin Lucia who had interrupted my early morning dreams. “Rosa, get up!” she commanded, like some general giving orders to his troops to march into battle.
Last week, Esther, a friend of mine for years, received news that was the best that any ordinary Cuban can hope to get. She then gave me a big hug, one that was as if we hadn’t seen each other in years. She cried, laughed, and was finally left speechless.
This past weekend my daughter Tania visited Caimanera, the town here in Guantanamo Province just north of the US naval base; it was her first time. Previously she had been told about the existence of the nearby American base, when and how it arose, and what it means to most Cubans.
The first time I heard about the “Ladies in White,” I considered these women to be exceptionally brave to protest and demonstrate in Cuba, a country where holding an opinion against the social system is a crime punishable by law. Since then I’ve read more about the group online.
Among the many traditions that were eliminated by the revolutionary government was that of “Three Kings Day,” on January 6, when in many parts of the world, children — whether Christian or not — are brought gifts by these supposed kings.