Fidel: Lessons of Life and Love

The Commander in Chief’s guidelines of his concept of Revolution were for him the guidelines of life, of doing, of thinking

Author: Leidys Maria Labrador Herrera | internet@granma.cu

August 19, 2022 12:08:05

The vitality of that inheritance of ideals and values, lies in the collective decision not to lose what has been achieved under their leadership 

Every being who, after having fulfilled the limits of his human existence, remains alive is undoubtedly exceptional and unique. No, this is not a mystical or religious statement, but a resounding truth that rests on the unlimited scope of certain figures throughout history.

We Cubans know well this is possible. We have had the privilege that this Island has been the mother and cradle of personalities capable of transgressing the mortality of our species, to eternally inhabit the dimension of thought, memory, admiration and love.

But reaching that stature is not a simple thing. It takes a lot of heart, a lot of courage, to put one's own existence in favor of the good of others, to make history from principles of humility and justice. It is necessary to defend values in which one believes at the price of any sacrifice and Fidel achieved all that, and more.

When he brilliantly defined the Revolution, on that unforgettable May 1st, 2000, he had unknowingly defined himself, because, being consistent to the last breath with everything described in his words, made him an immortal and imperishable man.

Fidel: unequivocal synonym of Revolution

We learned so much from the Commander-in-Chief that his teachings are with us at every step. How not to remember him when only the profound sense of the historical moment has allowed us to overcome adversities and sustain our goals and expectations.

How not to feel him present when we ponder the rights of Cuban men and women, equality, the accompaniment of the most unprotected. If the human being was always the center of this work for him and never, no matter how hard the times were, did he abandon the people.

There is much of Fidel when we say that despite the genocidal blockade, the perennial attacks on our country, the enemy's efforts to tear away our patriotic ideology, we will not stop, nor tire, nor give up. Because our eternal leader made it clear to us that we had to emancipate ourselves, but we would have to defy powerful dominant forces on that road.

By his own example, he showed that modesty, selflessness and altruism are essential values, which are enriched if they are accompanied by solidarity with others, with other peoples, with the world.

How else, if it were not for the audacity, intelligence and realism with which we face the obstacles, would we have been able to sustain Cuban socialism in a mostly capitalist and hegemonic world, which does not forgive alternative ways of living and thinking.

Our greatest strength has been and will always be that of truth and ideas. Thanks to them, the unbreakable unity of this people is sustained, which with truth as its banner, has been able to build its dreams of justice, but has been erected as a beacon for all those in the world who share that hope.

The guidelines of that concept of Revolution were for Fidel guidelines of life, of doing, of thinking. They were the paths that led him through this world and earned him the respect of all those who knew him, even if they did not share his ideology of thought.

Above all, those guidelines made possible something extremely sacred for Cuba: our principles of continuity. Those that led us to exclaim I am Fidel, and to hold him as the most precious of banners in each of the battles we fought.

The constant and undeniable presence

There is nothing rhetorical in our firm conviction of Fidel's survival. On the contrary, it is a certainty that is well understood by Cubans, a grateful people who know who deserves the privilege of their trust.

The vitality of that inheritance of ideals and values lies in the collective decision we have taken as a nation not to lose what we have achieved under his leadership, Raul's, and that of the entire generation that supported him in the effort to shake off the centuries of oppression that had wounded Cuba's dignity.

That is why the men and women who took the banners of socialism from his hands, maintain every day that the maxim is, and will continue to be, a republic with all and for the good of all, which in the life of a revolutionary always involves high doses of dedication and sacrifices.

As Fidel always did, there has not been a single moment in which his followers have turned away from the people. With fortitude, with patience, drawing strength from where only love can draw it, they have maintained the same concern for the problems of the people, for their worries, for their needs.

In compensation, those people who have never felt abandoned, who know that they are under the protective mantle of the Revolution and at the same time the protagonist of their existence, have responded with unity, with fidelity, with maturity, with dedication, to the maxim of thinking as a country.

In Cuba, power is popular

Among his countless merits, Fidel also has that of having understood from the beginning of his struggles, and of having always maintained after January 1, 1959, that a revolutionary leader has to live as the people live, to think as the people think, only then will he have enough sensitivity to know and listen to them.

And that leaders-people binomial, which has never been broken, and never will be, is an indisputable trump card that always accompanies us. Every decision, every social project, every new path we start, carries much of the thought and wisdom that moves among our people.

In Cuba, power is popular. It is not a trophy that is exhibited from positions of superiority, it is not tied to a position, it does not respond to millions in a bank account. Like everything we have built, it is also a common good, exercised in different ways, but, above all, from the vision of promoting that which favors the collective welfare.

The historic leader of the Revolution, always underpinned from his actions, from each of his pronouncements, from his daily actions, transparency before the people, the duty to be accountable to them, but at the same time, he promoted in the masses the conviction that the Revolution is not made alone, that the works are not built alone, that what belongs to all, is, at the same time, the responsibility of all.

Perhaps that is why these people do not accept what is badly done, why they do not accept anything without sustainable and well-founded pillars. Perhaps that is why the people are always an essential part of everything it does, and not from the position of passive observation, but from creativity and participation.

We are never alone

No matter how fair and equitable a society may be, there will always be people who, for the most diverse reasons, will remain in a situation of vulnerability in relation to others. The greatness of Cuban socialism lies precisely in promoting the recognition of these particularities, so that no human being, family or community remains at the mercy of abandonment or neglect. We also learned this from Fidel.

He taught us that those who need help are not always able to ask for it and that is why the Revolution must have the mechanisms that allow it to reach those people, even if there has not been a request for help. Thus, we have built our own definition of solidarity, which is expressed in all areas of society, inside and outside our borders.

But that maxim has also given an almost epic character rarely seen in the world, not to be absolute, to the practice, which has become an inalienable duty, that in every difficult and painful moment, people feel the support of their leaders, the accompaniment that helps to alleviate the deepest sorrow, the embrace even to strengthen the soul.

A Cuban is never alone. That feeling of solidarity, embodied in our leaders, responds to a collective feeling because, in this country, joy and pain are shared equally, that is how big is the heart their heart.

That is why, Fidel, August has always been the right time to celebrate your existence, because to you, to your generational brothers, to the immense work you bequeathed to us, to the unconditional love you always professed and profess to this Homeland, we owe the most beautiful and enduring lessons of life, which make us today, at the same time, better revolutionaries and better human beings.

Caption: The vitality of that inheritance of ideals and values, lies in the collective decision not to lose what has been achieved under their leadership

Translated by ESTI