This collection of short stories is based on a much more extensive journal that I wrote for my private use as part of dealing with the loss of so many of my older and very much beloved relatives. Much to my surprise, it contained also a great amount of humor along with the tenderness. In time, I became persuaded that, in a less personal form, it might also make entertaining reading for others as well as serve an educational tool in foreign language classes. If one day this tale were also to appear on the wide screen, I would indeed consider it a marvelous thing! For now, though, I hope the reader will see how a story that begins with the sorrow felt at the death of a loved one ends on a note of joy and of victory over sadness, over loss, and over death. I also hope the reader will see how the development of the story is one in which, as it unfolds, there is triumph over darkness through faith, with hope, and thanks to love. In writing it, there were many people who helped me beyond words, both in this world and in the next, since I sincerely believe that we never lose touch completely with those who precede us in the next life. First, I would need to thank my mother, Hortensia Orbea de Ramírez, who has been an incomparable editor in the Spanish version, a most accurate memory aide, and an inspiring “cheerleader”. I also need to give my greatest thanks to William Scott Lawler, another of my “cheerleaders”, and a technical wizard. Without him there would have been a lot of words, yes, but few if any pictures, graphics, floor plans, genealogies, and everything visual and graphic that has made the work so much more enjoyable to read. I thank him also for his support, for always saying that I could do it and that I would love doing it. He was right on both counts. Also, I want to thank all my family members, both on this and “the other side”, for always being there for me when I needed inspiration, or a clearer sentence, or a map of Cuba in 1959. They have all worked, as always, as a marvelous ensemble to help me and to love me. Finally, I would like to thank my Dad, Oscar A. Ramírez González, to whose eternal memory I dedicate this book, which I have written for him with so much love. He was my first teacher in the art of storytelling and later became an unbelievable fan in everything I did, something which I know for a fact he has not stopped doing even after his passing. With all my love. California, September 8th, 2005, Feast of Our Lady of Charity of El Cobre

Oscar M. Ramírez-Orbea, Ph.D., was born in Camagüey, Cuba, in 1955. He emigrated with his family to the United States in 1966, after completing elementary school in his home country.

In the U.S., he graduated summa cum laude from Loyola-Marymount University, Los Angeles, with a double major in Spanish and French and a minor in Italian.

He lived in Florence, Italy, for a time before returning to the U.S. and earning his Doctorate of Philosophy in Romance Languages and Literature at the University of California, Los Angeles, from where he graduated, again with highest honors.

He has traveled extensively in Europe and has also been the recipient of various scholarships, fellowships, and grants.

Dr. Ramírez then taught foreign languages and literatures for several years at the university level in California and also published in the field of literary criticism.

For many years now he has lived in Northern California, where he currently works in administration with the Federal government. He longs one day to return to his native Camagüey and to all the fond memories it holds for him.

Cuba, I Remember You/Cuba, te recuerdo is Dr. Ramírez’s first narrative work. Future writing plans currently being considered include the role of Catholicism in a post-Communist Cuba, and an anthology about his favorite city, New Orleans, and its colorful legends.

Cuba, I Remember You/Cuba, te recuerdo
A collection of 14 short stories, all in Spanish and English, based on the author’s experiences of childhood before and after the Communist revolution. Includes Appendix for educators wishing to use the book in Spanish or English foreign language classes. Lots of nostalgia for those who knew Cuba in the 50’s and 60’s and plenty of humor for readers in general. Includes also many period family photographs that illustrate the stories and bring them vividly to life!

Cuba, I Remember You/Cuba, te recuerdo
A collection of 14 short stories, all in Spanish and English, based on the author’s experiences of childhood before and after the Communist revolution. Includes Appendix for educators wishing to use the book in Spanish or English foreign language classes. Lots of nostalgia for those who knew Cuba in the 50’s and 60’s and plenty of humor for readers in general. Includes also many period family photographs that illustrate the stories and bring them vividly to life!

Cuba, I Remember You/Cuba, te recuerdo

Cuba, I Remember You/Cuba, te recuerdo