Photo: From the authorCAMAGÜEY.- There are dates that mark an entire country and some that coincidentally end up disrupting the destiny of each of its protagonists.

This is the case of Ernestina Amaro La Rosa. In 1961, when she was only 13 years old, she participated in the Literacy Campaign that was developed in Cuba with the aim of eradicating illiteracy and facilitating universal access to different levels of education for free, a fact that made Cuba the first illiteracy-free territory in Latin America.

- What motivated you to participate?

- What motivated me was that it was something new. But without a doubt, the great influence of my parents, in addition to the commitment to the Homeland. My grandfather obtained title to the land thanks to the Agrarian Reform Law. My family was very revolutionary and united and they instilled in me many values ​​since I was little that helped me to take this great step in my life.

–What did you do before going to literacy?

- I was studying cones at a primary school in El Zanjón, which currently belongs to the municipality of Sibanicú. At that age, she went from home to school and from school to home. I was there when I joined the Campaign when the Conrado Benítez brigades emerged.

- Where did you first become literate?

- It was at the house of a student named Herminia in the town of El Brazo; place where I was born and raised. I was literate during the day with three shifts and at night in a little school that was built thanks to a piece of land that my grandfather had donated.

- What memories do you have of your students?

- They were good people, respectful, affectionate and very attentive; in the peasant houses I felt like in my own. I imagine they were thinking “how this girl is going to be our teacher.” There were a total of ten between men and women, but they are people who live in my mind every day and with whom I had the best relationships. I always remember one of them, perhaps, the oldest, called Norte Cuba, a Haitian.

—How did being a literate change your life?

—Cuba is a country that was in charge of teaching its people to read and write. It was a wonderful experience and I will never be able to forget the moment when each of my students wrote their name for the first time. On the other hand, the commitment of my parents and my grandparents, of each person who was around me, motivated me to take this great step.

“Also thanks to this period of my life, I was able to study in Havana and later practice teaching in a town called La Araucana located in the current municipality of Sibanicú.

“This was a troubled time, people were becoming familiar with the Revolution and we took risks to see the results. People trusted Fidel, his convening power and we wanted to be there sharing our knowledge. Therefore, from that moment on, life changed each of us.

The national act in Havana's Plaza de la Revolución, that December 22, 1961, was chaired by Fidel. With broken words and uncovered emotion, she comments on the experience of having had the Leader of the Revolution up close.

“It was a special moment. We were all awaiting that event. I was in the front row. There was nothing prepared because with him there is never anything planned”.

–What do you do now in your free time?"

- To a task that I have done for many years and that is to help each child in the neighborhood to carry out their tasks by being a guide and a great teacher. Which reminds me of those times when I was literate and the good experiences I had during this great stage of my life with my students. Besides that I play an important role in each of the organizations to which I belong. I have also made many writings such as poetry which I have donated for different events in my town.

And it is that Nery, as those of us who know her affectionately call her, is a great woman, a friend and a faithful example for everyone who is by her side and despite not exercising the teaching profession, she contributes day by day to human improvement.

—What were the most important experiences you had?

- To be able to face my students for the first time, that they knew with the primers to learn to read and write. In addition to all the people that I could literate who became part of my life; together with my relatives who supported me so much with much love and affection. Therefore, the memories of that time in my life are kept in my heart.

“It was a moment of great commitment, loyalty and revolutionary conviction. Today, if the country needs me, I would teach again ”.

Translated by Linet Acuña Quilez