Lights After The Ashes

Lights After The Ashes / 14ymedio, Yoani Sanchez

14ymedio, Yoani Sanchez, Havana, 1 December 2016 – Timidly, without much
noise or fuss, Havanans are shaking off the national mourning decreed
for Cuba, as of last Saturday, for the death of Fidel Castro. Despite
cultural activities having been cancelled, the closed theaters and the
bars without alcohol, the first Christmas decorations are beginning to
be seen in some homes.

The owners of these houses adorned with lights and garlands risk being
reprimanded by those closest to officialdom or by the police.

In a city where the authorities have severely reprimanded those who play
loud music in their homes, or who plan any kind of festivities, to
install Christmas decorations is true defiance, a gesture of irreverence
more daring and forceful than an opposition slogan shouted in the Plaza
of the Revolution.

Thousands of families across the capital city are waiting for the end of
this period of seclusion imposed by the powers-that-be to prominently
display their tree with a star and snow made out of cotton. These are
the symbols of the new times, of the holidays that will inevitably come
after the great funeral.

Source: Lights After The Ashes / 14ymedio, Yoani Sanchez – Translating
Cuba -
http://translatingcuba.com/lights-after-the-ashes-14ymedio-yoani-sanchez/