On this glorious day, I would like to share with you something of an intimate nature. My mother was born in Matanzas Cuba and successfully escaped to America. I feel as emotional as that may have been for her, the especially emotional part was being separated from her parents for a whole year before reuniting. I really can’t imagine how heart-wrenching that must have been for my mother and my grandparents. Despite everything they went through, there are no two people more full of life and love than my mother, and my grandmother. Undoubtedly, my mother is equally strong as she is compassionate. It must have taken incredible resolve to go through it that. My mother now teaches Karate for a living. Recently, I stumbled across a wonderful BBC documentary following the journey of the Havana City Boxing Club’s national team. It is really amazing to see how skilled these children are at their craft. These kids are aiming for Olympic medals, which could change their whole lives. I watched this documentary partly as a metaphor for my mom overcoming adversity and partly because I love Boxing.

Watch this documentary.

I don’t want to give away any of the film’s content, but it does showcase a Havana and Matanzas Boxing rivalry, the state of modern-day Cuba and how resilient these kids are to put up with so much bureaucracy. Even if you don’t have a mom that escaped from Cuba, you can still enjoy the documentary; It may change your perception of how fortunate we are, especially if you live in North America. I am inspired by all of the fighters, especially Cristian, whose father was a Boxing Olympic gold medalist. I’m sure there is no pressure on him to be an overachiever, right? In any event, watching Cristian shadow box is poetry in motion.

Such a boss!

Please enjoy,
Alan