Havana has a party every time a Cuban living abroad visits the island. It is well known that for many years now many Cubans have been leaving their country in order to improve their economical situation, looking for better job conditions and more freedom to travel, buy a house or simply connect to the Internet.
Nowadays, all or majority of Cubans living in Europe (mostly Spain) and USA help their families by sending money and articles of all kinds, from cellphones to shoes, from soap bars to needles. Anything could be of good use over there. If you don’t need it your neighbour will. Cubans and Cuban friends know the drill. “Whatever you want to donate to Goodwill give it to me, I’ll send it back home”. One time I travelled to Havana with 10 pairs of jeans, all different sizes and they all found their owners within 2 hours. I could go on and on making a never ending list of all the things that I have brought to Cuba, but not only me, my dad, my aunt, my family friends in Spain. And we were/are the lucky ones, the ones that had access to “things” from “outside”.
My grandma depends on that help as much as my mother. My grandfather is almost 80 years old and still goes to work every day. His salary is not enough for the month. It has never been. Same thing applies to everyone I know. And older people need medicines and vitamins. We are not talking about a second pair of shoes anymore.
All this is of international knowledge if you have read a bit about the Cuban situation but there is one thing behind the material curtain which I consider more important and shocking and that is the pain of leaving your family and friends behind.
The reason I decided to post this today is because my mother is extremely happy this week. One of her lifetime friend’s son flew to Havana last night after at least two years of absence. His mom went to visit him a couple of times in the past two years but his grandma and dad did not have the opportunity. He brought with him his two year old son for everyone to meet. Until yesterday, he was the baby all of them knew through pictures.
Also, another two friends are visiting at the same time! All these people either grew up with her or their families have been friends for generations. Too many emotions, too much to say in a short time. Some human links can never be broken.
Distance in Cuba aggravates by the fact that phone calls are very expensive ($1 per minute if you want a good connection) and there is nothing like Skype video calls or constant emails that can make the separation more bearable. Cubans can send text messages for a $1 (dollar value).
In the world of today, (the first, developed world I must say), where it is so easy to travel, work or study in different cities and  countries, families get used to the idea of having their kids far, they know all it takes to communicate or get closer is a phone call or an airplane ticket. None of that is possible for Cubans. Meaning that  the individual crossing the immigration line is the one that can contact and afford to see the ones that are left behind.
Many marriages have been broken due to too much time apart. Uncountable family members have been buried without the presence of the ones on the other side of the planet.
Once the decision of staying in another country is taken you are never sure when it is going to be possible to return. You need the money to travel but also to sort your papers out. If something unexpected happens to your loved ones while you are in the process of settling in another country you can forget about being there for them. That is just the way it is under the Cuban sun.
I am glad that my mom is happy seeing some of the people she loves and misses every day. I am sure a lot of coffee has been prepared and a lot of late night conversations and excitement are keeping everyone up.
Good night to them in the distance… until June.
