What the System in Cuba Teaches Us

Nonardo Perea

HAVANA TIMES — When I was young kid and went to a rural boarding school, I remember that every time a visit from the municipal authorities was announced, the school’s directors would hurry to paint the school facade, get students to clear up the common areas, and in the blink of an eye. That is, everything that was a complete disaster was transformed into something wonderful.

I remember that during those visits, lunches and dinners were a lot more delicious and varied than normal, because most of the time all we were given was rice, chicharros (a type of peas) with worms included and a boiled egg, a dish we would call the “three musketeers”.

Our happiness didn’t last, and once the big shots were out of sight, everything went back to how it used to be, and the school was a disaster again. That’s where I learned the importance of lying, of making people see what isn’t real, of creating a fake reality in the eyes of others.

I was never a good student, I hardly ever studied, and when it came to the exams, I rarely knew the answers, but I wasn’t the only one, that’s why we were given a helping hand. The teachers would take us to a desk, we would sit down and we’d been given a test that had already been done so that we could copy it. We all passed with flying colors, in the end.

That’s how we made our parents happy at the end of the year, and how our teachers proved that they were doing their educational job well.

Today, after so many years, I suspect that lots of lies are told on the news and in the media, when features are made about abundant farm production, where everything is working miraculously well, and I know that’s not the case.

Lies have always been present because it’s something we’ve been taught to do ever since we were little. From a young age we are made aware not to tell the whole truth, because that could become a problem for you.