This concept, for a very particular reason, has been in my mind for a while now. How do you emotionally say goodbye to someone whom you have not seen but once in 56 years? We human beings, suffer from a distancing malady ( no, not the famous virus induced “social distancing” so in vogue now ) which will --probably as an exercise in self-defense and survival— slowly erode some of the emotional ties and memories which we formed over the early years of our life, after we are suddenly and totally distanced from these. This erosion of older memories opens the way for us to manage and do our best to live through the encroaching threats of daily life and helps handle moments of potential trauma. Yes, we are human. Trite excuse but true, nonetheless. With all the failures, successes, foibles and -why not say it?-   the downright stupid behavior at which we excel more often than we’d like to acknowledge. And this last inherent malady takes several forms, none very flattering when ...

I am now, like most people around me, going into a forced second week of quarantine. And, like them, this gives me ample time to sit, think, project into the future, create a new life experience … or not. We have already painted a few walls ( not too well, I’m afraid …), done the grass a couple of times, tended the garden, downloaded half of the universe’s music, re-arranged a lot of files in the computer, changed some paintings around, “discovered” several shows on Netflix, Hulu, and YouTube, read some books for the second or third time, managed not to argue (too much) with my other half,   and are close to running out of things to do… and there are still one or two weeks to go. On a more serious thinking process, what is totally a human issue has quickly been converted into a political game of “my junk is bigger than yours”. With total disregard, by some parts, as to the damage this will do to those who are directly affected by this situation. Which is practically 80% o...

·        family, ethnic, or cultural origins, especially as the reasons for one's long-standing emotional attachment to a place or community.  "it's always nice to return to my roots" The last entry in this once well-fed but now too lean blog, was November of last year. I can tell you that several times since then my eyes have stared, in vain, at the blank screen of the computer. And, at times, there usually is not much that can be done except to get back to work. In all fairness, my time has been quite taken up by ESL classes and a FB page which demands time and effort. But now, time that has appeared thanks to that unwelcome visitor which, hiding behind a corona, ( Sp. for crown ) is apparently unleashing an unrelenting attack on the human race. This is forcing me to become better acquainted with my immediate neighborhood and neighbors, albeit from a deemed safe distance of 2 meters and at least for the next 15 days. Because of this, th...

A visit to this mind sanctuary is long overdue to help with a bit of reflection, and perhaps also to help a sometimes-over-busy mind cope with the demands of day to day business. It has been one of those sequences of days when unresolved and unexpected issues come and queue up at the door, just like patrons at a post office line on a busy holiday, waiting to place the responsibility of handling and delivery of their late gift packets on someone else’s hands. Since this is my forum ( it is … Isn’t it? ) I think it is a good place to vent a little bit. “They” ( after 73 years, I still don’t know who “they” are ) say that putting one’s thoughts out there will make it easier to cope, as well as to visualize what or where a solution might be. But the truth is that I am not sure the “grievances” are about others and their issues or about my own shortcomings, if I am going to be honest. I am told constantly that as one gets older --yes, in this case, me-- all traits and qualitie...

Is that a real title? I don’t know. Probably not. As you can guess, I am trying very hard to get back on a “writing groove” -whatever that is- so as not to let far too much time go by between “appearances” on this “blog-stage” Surprisingly, these entries are creeping up to the 20,000-hit mark, since they were first started as a “filler-of-time-while-recuperating-from-cancer-and-other-assorted-issues” hobby. Yes, I do understand there are many bloggers who will get that many “hits” on a daily basis but hey, let me enjoy the moment. This blog was meant for a relatively small group of friends, who nicely told me they liked the way I wrote. They are/were also mostly from Cuba, the same as I, so the memories which were put on paper (Ok, digital paper!!) -although my own- were memories to which they could relate. And they did. That, combined with the fact that I spent then most days sitting or lying on my rehab bed, allowed me to give the blog the undivided time and effort it ne...

This morning I woke up with a heaviness in my mind and heart. I have been fairly busy lately, so it was assumed that perhaps this was the reason for this tired, but not quite tired feeling. Still in bed, but thinking about some strange, but unremembered dreams that have come along these past few nights and trying to make sense out of this whole scenario, I looked at my phone to see the time and noticed the date. October 18 th . The anniversary of my son Eric’s death as a result of an accident. Then I understood. In my heart I knew this was a special day, even if my mind – in its ever-ongoing effort of self-protection- chose to not recognize it right away. The years go by and blur into a non-distinct date and time. It becomes a moment, a late evening phone call with news no parent wants to hear or should have to hear. Is the hurt gone? No, not quite. Yes, time does have a way of lessening it, but it is an empty feeling that never goes, or will go away. Memories? Many...

I have been watching a TV series which features a writer as a primary character. A recurrent theme is the ( in )famous “writer’s block”. I can totally identify with that concept, since it has kept me away from my computer time and again. Lately, whenever there is an urge to sit and write anything, that writer’s block thingy pops up and nothing happens … It’s a real killer … Or … probably a much more honest appraisal would be ( at least in my situation ) a case of the “lazies” accompanied by a rather busy schedule. So, I guess we can call it a “lazy block”. This is a far more serious than a mere “writer’s block” because it affects the writing, the sitting, the thinking, the doing, the undoing, the wanting “to do or not to do” … Hey, is this last bit similar in scope to “to be or not to be”? Wow… if it is, I’m running in some heady circles!! It isn’t? … Aw shucks … And just when I was getting used to think about “deah” ( that’s “dear” to you, uninitiated Brits) “cousin Wil...