Two Years and A Little Bit of Everything / Rebeca Monzo

It has been two years since I started my blog. Starting it was not an easy decision to make. Fear – such an innate human characteristic – overcame me. I had to decide if I would write using my real name, or one created by me. As a reflection of my true being, I opted to identify myself.

Initially my blog caused few problems. However, as time passed and I continued to comment on new events, this changed. Some close friends became scared, and distanced themselves. The majority, were the type who are also afraid to display a Christmas tree or holiday lights. Or those who hang lights only on the last day of the year, to welcome “the triumph of the Revolution”and take them down before “Three Kings Day”, to avoid misunderstanding. Yet, there are also those that have encouraged me, and become closer friends to demonstrate their support. It is to these friends that I feel a heavy responsibility.

I remember my first post which I had to stick on a friend’s blog. I did this because even though I had enough material to get started, I had yet to create my site. It was titled, “Wild, Wild Central Havana”. It described the challenges a group of friends and I were ringing in the New Year with, anticipating having to conquer.

Immediately the critiques emerged, both the good and bad. I realized that from this moment, everything I wrote would be under close scrutiny. This did not dissuade me. On the contrary, it filled me with incentive.

With the passing of time, “Through the Eye of a Needle” has continued to win followers, admirers and detractors. To refer to my country, I have started to use the word, “planet”, to signify that our land is not comparable to any other, nor is it ruled like any other. What is considered normal in any other part of the world, here has no place. For, whoever else writes without hiding their real identity is also subjected to harsh criticism, and false accusations through the political structure.

Finally, finding balance, I feel I have derived more pleasure than trouble from continuing my blog. I try to write with relative frequency, in spite of our technological limitations and the imposed prohibitions that we must try to negotiateon a daily basis.

I hope to be able to keep counting on the support of you, my readers, taking into account your comments, favorable or otherwise, to improve myself every day and keep bringing these daily snippets that concern me and those that, in some way or other, I am part of.

December 31 2011