The “Little Witches” Arrived / 14ymedio, Yoani Sanchez

”Little witches” (known is rail lilies in English) in the 14ymedio newsroom. (14ymedio)
”Little witches” (known is rail lilies in English) in the 14ymedio newsroom. (14ymedio)

14ymedio bigger14ymedio, Yoani Sanchez, Havana, 14ymedio – There are those who believe that the pages of newspapers only have space for tragedy, armed conflicts and diatribes against politicians. In a world where the newspapers prioritize the extraordinary and the TV screens are filled with crises or shipwrecks, the little things, the common moments, lose narrative space. However, a good part of our existence takes place among the everyday, in the middle of a cycle that repeats itself over and over, like the seasons and the flowerings.

In the 14ymedio newsroom, 130 feet above the ground and amid the informational hustle, these “little witches” have been born. Known as “rain lilies” in English, no one planted them in a flowerbed, but they have arrived in the earth of some other plant and bloomed this summer. They are fragile and fleeting, but their simple presence convinces us that life continues, despite the problems, the fears, and the stubbornness of the leaders.

With their herringbone stems and ephemeral petals, these “little witches” have wrested a smile from the work team that reports a reality where there are few reasons for joy. One afternoon, just after a very long power outage, they sprang into bloom, on the same day that the political police browbeat one of our provincial collaborators. But here are these “little witches,” to remind us that being journalists is also narrating the diminutive, describing the ordinary and supporting freedom, like a plant, that returns to bloom again.