The building where the National Poet Nicolás Guillén was born, in his Camagüey, houses the foundation that bears his name. In recent months, the house has been renovated, to spread his poetic and journalistic legacy; a commitment of a group of writers and artists who have put their hearts together with that of Yohandra Santana, president of the Foundation.

Eager to learn about the different clubs and events, I went to the house, located on Hermanos Agüero Street. The vice president, Verónica Fernández, was waiting for me there.

Upon reaching the threshold, I remembered a custom in Camagüey that is practically in disuse: that of having the door to the street interlocked with a metal door hook. As tradition indicates, I knocked, removed the door hook and was already in the room, when the hostess came to greet me.

After the greeting, I told Verónica that I had returned to my memories of my grandmother Cachita’s house, where the front door always remained this way, so that neighbors and acquaintances could remove the door hook and enter without further ado. This is how the poet’s home remains, always open to all audiences.

Mission

The mission of disseminating his work and sharing it from different artistic manifestations I was able to verify when I entered the beautiful interior patios of the house, where the greenery of the plants prevails, the waterpot so present in his work, and everything that can take us in time to the “gentle region” that Guillén fell in love with.

Attest to this is the various clubs that take place there: All Women, Footprints of History, Visions of Camagüey’s society, as well as the one dedicated to concert music; proposals with which they also have the common purpose of adding the neighbors close to the house.

From poetry

At the house of the Guillén Foundation, the verses of the National Poet also arrive in a curious way, through the craft book project carried out by the writer Niurkis Pérez.

Young creators are also present, through the Poetry House project. In this Guillenian space, love, family, blackness and their customs have a rhyming quote.

A future challenge

The restoration of the property and the meetings promoted by the Nicolás Guillén Foundation from its subsidiary in the province of Camagüey, will make a dream come true: the opening of an interactive museum.

Another challenge that is already advancing is the project with the Haitian community in La Clarita -a town in the municipality of Vertientes- for the dissemination of the customs of that emigrant settlement, from typical food recipes, dance, music and the creation their own instruments.

Undoubtedly, in the house that I visited there are many ways in which the thought and work of the poet from Camagüey is spread, who came from a walk and stayed here forever.

The farewell

As I was about to leave, on my way to the front door, someone knocked, removed the door hook, and went in looking for help. She was a teacher interested in the texts of the collection of poetry La paloma de vuelo popular (1958).

So we dusted off the poem Casa de vecindad, the one that after unhooking the door hook, we were already reciting.

Casa de vecindad, patio del mar Caribe,

Con mi guitarra de áspero son, aquí estoy,

para ver si me saco del pecho una canción.

Translated by: Aileen Álvarez García