- “Mom, how can you donate all your new housecoats? Keep these two, they're nice and cool.”
- “They make me too hot, and the ones I like are the ones I'm wearing. Honey, didn't you see the photo of the girl with five children who lost everything? I'm not going to keep any old rags.”
...
It seemed that the traces of Hurricane Melissa were already visible in Las Tunas when, in the early hours of October 31, we learned from social media that thousands of people from Río Cauto, Granma, were arriving in the province because of the floods caused by Hurricane Melissa.
The screech of the train roused various families from their lethargy, children with fear etched on their faces, elderly people with makeshift crutches, and the occasional dog tucked under their arms. In most cases, their luggage consisted of nylon bags containing whatever they had at their disposal, because time was of the essence, and life today does not offer many possibilities.
They descended to the platform with the unmistakable mark of small Cuban country towns, marked by need and humility. The photos of the flooded neighborhoods completed the picture. Years of sacrifice under the mud, the few household appliances lost, the crops, the animals, the photos, the hope...
SAD DAYS
The Manifiesto de Montecristi Agricultural Polytechnic Institute (IPA) opened its doors first. The news, from the dawn of the evacuation, touched the residents of Jobabo deeply: bread from the basic food basket was needed to prepare breakfast for the evacuees. That would not be the only humanitarian gesture.
The next morning, donations began to arrive. Ordinary people immediately rallied together, even though they were also suffering from the harsh economic conditions. Packages of detergent, soap, underwear, toys, and clothes worn by others piled up, those flashes of kindness that make Cubans great.
The municipality of "Colombia" and the capital of Las Tunas joined in welcoming the victims, both state institutions and family homes; some people had a dozen people in their homes. At the same time, forces from the Ministry of the Interior and Red Cross volunteers from this province traveled to Guamo and helped rescue hundreds of people who were waiting, even on the roofs of their homes.
The words and lens of a reporter, who witnessed 30 hours of devastation in the Cauto deltas, brought tears to the eyes of those who witnessed the journey made by the FAR's amphibious vehicles, whose progress allowed them to reach our soil, desperate to find shelter, hungry... They came with only the clothes on their backs, but were grateful for their lives.
THE UNMISTAKABLE SIGN OF SOLIDARITY
The gesture of the Las Tunas Lumberjacks was the impetus for the solidarity that had already begun much earlier in the Balcón de Oriente. Once again, through social media, we saw them appear with boxes at the Carlos Leyva González school for sports initiation (EIDE in Spanish) in this city.
The stories unfolded in a gray amalgam, but the people of my homeland became immense. From a Facebook post, we learned that an elderly man named Antonio needed a pair of size 41 flip-flops, and that his septuagenarian friend wore size 43. The comments below brought tears to our eyes and secured the resources that were offered and more.
Bicycle taxi owners and drivers in Jobabo took jams, fabrics, soaps, and other items to the nearest evacuation centers. Then, motorcyclists from Las Tunas braved the distances and reached Granma with the brotherhood's luggage. Their sun-weathered faces returned home with the peace of mind of a job well done.
A doctor from the Mártires de Las Tunas pediatric hospital, Daniel del Toro, led a spontaneous movement to help a mother from Río Cauto whose 1-year-old child was admitted to the gastroenterology ward of that health facility. Food, clothes, shoes, sheets, and affection that cannot be counted arrived at his little bed.
Former students of the Luis Urquiza Jorge Pre-University Vocational Institute of Exact Sciences (IPVCE in Spanish), new economic actors, and the general public brought donations to this center out of love for their neighbors, with the spirit of those who share what little they have in a time of inflation, economic unsustainability... crisis.
Samuel was born in this cactus-covered region as a reminder that life always strives upward. The Real Estate Services Agency and the Provincial Union of Commerce, Gastronomy, and Services (CGS in Spanish) made sure that the little boy from Granma had his layette and took home a warm embrace from this land. Beautiful and strong, he entered this world.
The SxFotos studio gave María Elena the snapshots of her 15th birthday. Thanks to the sensitivity of Gianny López Brito and the fresh pen of our Leanet, we learned that many hands came together to give her a beautiful celebration, even though she would have preferred to be with her loved ones, in her village, without the damp footprint that suddenly took away much more than the money to make her party possible.
We followed the waltz of the girl in blue through the lens, and it also brought tears to the eyes of the families from Las Tunas when the parents turned to see her wearing makeup... There was emotion and pain beyond words.
There was, and still is, much more anonymous, spontaneous solidarity. It also came from our people outside the country. I dare say that a sensitivity that we had been holding back came to the surface, with a taste of life and difficult times. What pride this authentic, unadulterated empathy has aroused ... How wonderful that we knew how to put our hand on the arm of those in need and let them know that they can count on us.
