José Mujica, that great man, whom I admire, made a reflection that managed to impress me in a way, and today I would like to share it with you, precisely because of how valuable and true it seemed to me, especially in these times when it is very important to ensure a correct education in the new generations that are emerging.
It said: “Let’s not ask the teacher to fix the holes in the home…At home you learn to: greet, say thank you, be clean, be honest, be punctual, be polite, speak properly, not say bad words, respecting others and those not so similar, being supportive, eating with your mouth closed, not stealing, not lying, taking care of property and the property of others, being organized…At school you learn: Mathematics, Language, Science, Social Studies, English, Geometry and the values that fathers and mothers have instilled in their children are reinforced.”
Important advice
And I immediately thought of the usefulness of those words and the need we have for each adult, parent or not, to know how to lead the young people and children at home in the care of heritage, because when passing through our squares, parks, streets and buildings of such value as the ones we fortunately have in our city, we see in more than one case, the indolence of some, who sit on benches with their feet on top of them or climb on them; others put their feet on walls, without thinking about the damage they cause to their city, with such significant values that they have just given us the satisfaction that we have been granted the recognition of being a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 2008.
On more than one occasion I have referred to this matter, with great regret, because I believe, I am almost certain, that the family is not playing the role that truly corresponds to it and, of course, life can collect that debt from us if we do not all unite and we attack this evil that with just a little effort we can eradicate; a matter that the Historian’s Office always makes its own and calls us to be much more responsible.
That is why I invite you to behave in a better way when it comes to the care of that which will remain for those who have not even been born yet, but who will be very proud, as I am, of being from Camagüey.
Translated by: Aileen Álvarez García
