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My Kindergarten ABC's

By
Real Estate Agent with Keller Williams Realty Lafayette/West Lafayette, Indiana

 

 

 

 

 

 

               ABSENCE OF MEMORIES

I have absolutely no memories of my kindergarten experience at Helen Muraski School in Strongsville, Ohio other than PLAYING DODGEBALL IN THE GYMNASIUM!  I just happened to be the champion!  No doubt it was an harbinger of things to come in developing a strong appreciation of all things academic in my                                                          future school career!!!   ^_~

 

 

 I have good reason to be smiling as this was the site of my only in school memory.

This picture was taken in the gymnasium the site of my dodge ball prowess!  I remember being quicker than greased lightning on a snake's tongue in dodging the balls thrown my way. 

I have dodged many obstacles thrown in my path so far and all the credit goes to God for protecting me.

 

 

 

               BUS TRAUMA       

My first day of kindergarten was ruined as I stood up to exit the still moving school bus to make sure I did NOT miss my house and the driver SCREAMED at me to

         "SIT DOWN, NOW!!!"  

He then stopped at our house and I was too scared to get up and exit so after a brief pause he closed the door, and I as I looked back I watched the surprise on Mom's face turn to anger as she ran up the driveway to get into the car and pursue the bus driver! 

At the last scheduled stop the driver looked bewildered as to why I remained on the bus and then he finally understood why that crazed woman behind him was continually honking her horn and gesturing wildly!

It can be a tough world out there and we need to speak up right now when action is needed!  We don't have the luxury of always having the comforting arms of our mother to save us when things go wrong.

 

 

                                                          

            CUBA

My most vivid memories of my kindergarten school year happened when we joined my dad who was working in Havana, Cuba before, DURING, and after the successful overthrow of the Batista regime by Fidel Castro and his rebel troops.

I had a great sense of wanting to learn about geography  in trying to keep up with dad's travels as a diesel mechanic who installed marine engines and powerful generators in shipyards, power plants, and missile fields.

 

   Revolution 

I have scanned a page of Dad's work log for Cleveland Diesel(subsidiary of General Motors) from January 1-10 in 1959.  During this period Batista, the Cuban dictator, fled Cuba and Castro made his triumphant entry into Havana ending the corrupt Batista regime.

Dad had a sense of humor as he did not want to get "lead poisoning" reporting to the job site and he actually helped evacuate other Americans fleeing the city.  Things did get tense when Castro's mountain guerrillas entered the city and the battle waged for control of Havana.

 

 KINDERGARTEN CUBA:  no school-just life lessons!!!

 

We joined Dad in Havana about two weeks after the successful Castro Revolution in Cuba.  It was the ultimate field trip for a 5 1/2 year old kindergartner!

 

Subject mastery:  ECONOMICS

Our rental house was a shock for this working class family!  Our backyard was the OCEAN, we had a pool, and we had money left over that mom could have a gardener(Alejandro) and a maid(Maria).  They became members of our family. 

I learned very quickly about such things as standards of living and exchange rates!  (Maybe that spurred me on to be a future ECONOMICS teacher!)  An American penny could buy you the largest and tastiest orange you would ever want to consume!  NO SCURVY ON THIS ISLAND FOR THIS BUCKEYE KID!

 

 

HISTORY

Havana was rich in history and dad had the weekends off so we had many opportunities to visit all around the island and take in the sights and history.

Dad witnessed a revolution and the toppling of a government, and we had daily contact with the Castro guerrillas.

You sure couldn't pose for a picture with Castro's troops and hold their rifles back in Ohio in school.   HOW COOL WAS THAT???

 

 

 

POLITICAL SCIENCE

 

We had many discussions in our household, and with our Cuban neighbors about the future of Cuba and if the revolution would be good or bad for Cuba.

Mom had the viewpoint that the Cubans were oppressed by Batista and that Castro could improve upon their lot.

Dad disagreed and thought there was a danger that the revolution could turn to communism.

I wasn't particularly interested one way or another, but I did find the Castro soldiers to be friendly and we were treated as friends.

We learned after we returned to Ohio that our neighbor next door had his son executed as a threat to the Cuban state under the new Castro government.

 

Hmmm. . . . was mom right or dad?

 

 

SOCIAL SCIENCES

 

Wherever mom went with my younger brother Bob, the Cuban people would beg mom to hold him!

They had never seen a blond baby-let alone hold one in their arms!  

The Cuban people were wonderful, loving, and caring.

I would love to go back to Cuba and retrace these boyhood memories!

We had a great time with our Cuban friends exploring and collecting scorpions and fiddler crabs and placing them in our swimming pool. 

Doesn't every kid want to know if a scorpion can swim???  Needless to say dad was not too thrilled when he came home from work and wanted to use the pool!

In my opinion, our government has made a HUGE mistake not establishing relations with Cuba since the Castro Revolution.  The people are warm and generous and they need to be exposed to a better system, although I do believe like my mom that the poor are better off than under the Batista government. 

That is a debate for another time though!  Can you tell I ended up as a Social Studies teacher for 31 years???

My Kindergarten ABC's, how can I ever forget them?  The building blocks for my future career in education!

 

Hmmmmmm. . . . . . I wonder if my Cuba experience had any impact upon my political views?  ^_~   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Looking for a home in Lafayette, West Lafayette, Tippecanoe County or the surrounding area?

I would love the opportunity to help you realize your dream of home ownership, or finding that investment property that is right for you.  I am committed to quality service and will work hard representing your interests.

 

 

Comments(117)

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Myrl Jeffcoat
Sacramento, CA
Greater Sacramento Realtor - Retired

I have some vivid memories of kindergarten.  Mostly, that we all had to rotate over a period of days to have our turn with clay.  On the morning that my turn was to arrive, which I had waited patiently for, the school nurse took me out of class, and I was sent home with Whooping Cough.  It so traumatized me that when I became an adult, I had to remedy it by buying a potter's wheel and kiln:-)

Seriously however, your photos of Cuba are very fascinating to me.  I don't know why, but in the last several yearsI have wanted to travel there.  I don't want to go to just any ole Cuba, I want to see Castro's Cuba, because during the 1960s, I remember being fearful of what was going on there.  I think the last 50 years have been a snapshot in time for that island nation, that will likely change drastically in the next decade.

Sep 15, 2011 04:12 PM
Bruce Walter
Keller Williams Realty Lafayette/West Lafayette, Indiana - West Lafayette, IN

Myrl, that is awful about missing your turn at pottery!  No doubt it was the start of your artistic nature at being such a modern day accomplished photographer!!!   My daughter has some talent with clay pottery and I am amazed at the steady hand it requires.

Myrl, even though our government would not like to admit it I think you would find that the poor are much better off now in Cuba than they were with Batista.  I DO want to go back to Cuba and I think it is an utter mistake to continue our policies of isolation.  How long did it take for the dissolution of the Soviet Union after the first Pizza Hut was introduced into Moscow near Red Square??? ^_~  We continue to isolate Cuba yet ship all our capital to China so they can become a military superpower and they will have the largest economy on earth by about 2025.  THAT MAKES SENSE!!!!  The Cubans are wonderful people!

Myrl, I'll meet you down in Mexico City and then. . . . .

Sep 15, 2011 04:27 PM
Sheila Newton Team Anderson & Greenville SC
Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices - C. Dan Joyner - Anderson, SC
Selling the Upstate since 1989

the scan of that worklog is priceless. i love it..sorry you had such a bad bus experience.. sounds like fun in Cuba though

Sep 16, 2011 06:54 AM
Bruce Walter
Keller Williams Realty Lafayette/West Lafayette, Indiana - West Lafayette, IN

Sheila and Newton Team:  I am so glad I saved Dad's materials and pictures.  I just wish the picture that he took of Castro riding on a tank in the Havana victory parade wasn't stolen from his car when we moved to Indiana.  That would have been a historic picture to own!  Thanks for your visit!

Sep 16, 2011 07:02 AM
Michelle Gibson
Hansen Real Estate Group Inc. - Wellington, FL
REALTOR

Bruce - What a fantastic post!  I would definitely print this and pass it down to my children and grand children.

Sep 16, 2011 08:19 AM
Bruce Walter
Keller Williams Realty Lafayette/West Lafayette, Indiana - West Lafayette, IN
Michelle, thanks for dropping in, and I appreciate your thoughts! Something like this is a step above the photo albums that mom left us, although I sure treasure the pictures we have!
Sep 16, 2011 09:13 AM
Sergio Rebollo Jr.
Real Estate TeamMates - Miami, FL

Bruce as I read your post I was thrilled to see the pictures of a Cuba that once was.  A Cuba that I never got to enjoy.  An oceanfront house that was impeccable with a gorgeous convertible Chevrolet in the driveway.  I was born September 22, 1960 in Havana, Cuba.  By the end of October, only 40 days later, my parents came to Miami and started a new life here. Cuba's poor are not better off today under Castro.  Batista was the lessor evil of the two evils.  My family was poor but under Batista, my family was able to raise livestock on their property and sell it openly.  Today if you have 5 cows on your farm and you decide to take one and slaughter it for it's meat you can go to jail.  The cows although on your farm are not yours as they belong to the government.  If one cow passes or is stolen you better report it to the local authorities as you could be charged when they notice that one is missing.

There is no milk to feed children older than 2 or 3 years old.  You are provided one pound of chicken for the month for a family of four.  Here in the US you want to have a lobster feast you can do it freely as long as you can afford the meal.  In Cuba, lobster is national resource that is reserved for the tourist market.  You can buy lobster in the black market but if it is discovered that you are often eating lobster (a lobster tail is only $1.50 to $2.00 per tail in the black market) you can go to jail.  You may be investigated as the typical worker earns the equivalent to $150 to $200 monthly.  Spending $50 to $60 on a couple of lobster feasts per month doesn't add up financially to the local authorities if you only earn $150 to $200 monthly.

There is no Internet access to the general public.  The general public can only read what is fed to them through Granma the only publication available which happens to be the government voice.  Television programming is very selective and when either of the Castro's decide to address the nation, every single station (from those very few) carry the speech for hours.  Your only option is to turn the tv set or radio off.  You have no alternatives.

My family was poor in 1959 while in Cuba but did have running water.  Have you seen the recent pictures where the poor, and at times elderly, have to walk down to the street level from their 3rd or 4th floor apartment when the water truck arrives with buckets to fill them with fresh water since there is no running water?

Can we blame the deteriorated infrastructure on this country?  Cuba had great natural resources...sugar and tobacco just to name two.  Fidel Castro stole the resources while these industries were producing.  Never reinvested in the infrastructure and slowly but surely depleted the country's resources.

An argument can always be made when one discusses "are you better off now than 4 years ago?" or "Are the poor better off under Castro or Batista?"

I would hope that you and your readers all agree though that those who enjoy FREEDOM are better off than those that do not enjoy FREEDOM.  FREEDOM is an intangible value that Cuban people unfortunately do not enjoy.

Sep 17, 2011 03:40 AM
Bruce Walter
Keller Williams Realty Lafayette/West Lafayette, Indiana - West Lafayette, IN

Sergio, thank you so much for your incredibly thought out answer.  I remember the water truck coming by and the driver shouting out "Agua, Agua!".  We would get a couple of those large containers that must have held about 30 gallons of water every couple of days.

What are your impressions on health care and education?  I would think the health care is certainly better under Castro for the poor; certainly not for the well-to-do/middle class they as they would not have the options as they did before Castro.

What are your thoughts on how to go about achieving the ultimate goal of freedom for the Cuban people, Sergio?  Is it though isolation or normalization of relations?  I would love to go back and visit a free Cuba someday!

Thanks so much for your passionate comment and visiting my blog, Sergio!

Sep 17, 2011 05:07 AM
Judy Jennings
Top Agent Plus - Middleboro, MA
Tap into Judy's real estate expertise & resources.

Bruce - What a fascinating story. You must have been a wonderful teacher. You should have entered this contest. This is a definite winner in my eyes. Well written. Thank you for sharing your Kindergarten experience.

Sep 17, 2011 09:49 AM
Bruce Walter
Keller Williams Realty Lafayette/West Lafayette, Indiana - West Lafayette, IN

Judy, thanks for your kind comments and for taking the time to read my very long post!  I appreciate that!

Sep 18, 2011 04:40 AM
Maya Thomas, Broker
Tampa, FL
Please see my client recommendations.

How fun to step back in time with you!  Wonderful pictures!

Reading Sergio's post was amazing.  I can not imagine living that way.  I hope he comes back and leaves a response to your response.

Nov 28, 2011 03:07 PM
Bruce Walter
Keller Williams Realty Lafayette/West Lafayette, Indiana - West Lafayette, IN

Thanks for taking the time to read this Maya and the comments.  You are right about Sergio's comment being heartfelt, honest, and very interesting.  What is your opinion about Cuba and if we should continue the hard line or normalize relations, Maya?

Nov 29, 2011 09:40 AM
Anonymous
Sarah Powley

Fascinating story about your formative years in Cuba, Bruce! I hadn't realized all that and there we were teachin in the same building for all those years! Sarah

Dec 31, 2011 06:04 AM
#110
Bruce Walter
Keller Williams Realty Lafayette/West Lafayette, Indiana - West Lafayette, IN

Sarah, thanks for your visit!  Some of our faculty members had some VERY interesting stories! 

Did you know that one of our faculty members met JACK RUBY in his Dallas nightclub before Nov. 22nd 1963, and that he actually knew who shot OSWALD before the press or world did as everyone watched Oswald being gunned down by Ruby on live TV?

Jan 01, 2012 02:02 AM
Broker Patty Da Silva Da Silva
Green Realty Properties® - 954-667-7253 - Cooper City, FL
Top Listing Broker

Bruce,

I love reading this post and seeing the pictures.

Really pretty picture of your mom holding Bob.

Feb 29, 2012 11:51 PM
Bruce Walter
Keller Williams Realty Lafayette/West Lafayette, Indiana - West Lafayette, IN

Hi Patty! 

So glad you were able to read the post on our family stay in Cuba. 

My mom was a strong and amazing woman!  She was way ahead of her time.  She hunted, fished, skied, piloted tow boats down the Ohio, Cumberland, Tennessee, and Mississippi Rivers, went with Dad on a fishing trawler sortie, worked several other jobs and raised the four Walter kids which was a full time job in itself!  MOM, I miss you!

Mar 02, 2012 08:08 AM
Elyse Berman, PA
LoKation Real Estate - Boca Raton, FL
Boca Raton FL (561) 716-7824

Hi Bruce,  What wonderful memories to have of your time in Cuba.  The photos are great!   I must have missed this post the first time around but am sure glad I caught it now.  

Apr 13, 2013 11:58 AM
Bruce Walter
Keller Williams Realty Lafayette/West Lafayette, Indiana - West Lafayette, IN
Hi Elyse, thanks for your visit and I would love to go back to Cuba; unfortunately I don't have the connections that celebrities do.
Apr 13, 2013 11:05 PM
Georgie Hunter R(S) 58089
Hawai'i Life Real Estate Brokers - Haiku, HI
Maui Real Estate sales and lifestyle info

Well that was really interesting.  Cuba sounds like a pretty cool place and it's a good thing the doors are opening up again.

Mar 26, 2017 04:12 PM
Bruce Walter
Keller Williams Realty Lafayette/West Lafayette, Indiana - West Lafayette, IN

Georgie, I have always wanted to return to Cuba, and maybe that dream will be realized in the future!

Mar 31, 2017 05:48 AM
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