In the mornings, as the sun begins to filter through the windows of the grandparents’ home in the Holguin municipality of Cacocum. A soft melody can be heard, a kind of maternal song that emerges amid laughter. Vocal warm-up exercises, and the occasional murmur of nostalgia.
It is the voice of Soraya, an art instructor who has transformed that common space. Once ruled by silence and routine, into a workshop of emotions, creativity, and life. But Soraya didn’t arrive at the grandparents’ home as if on a work assignment.
She doesn’t direct, she accompanies. With a smile always on her face and a seemingly inexhaustible energy. Soraya has managed to turn her artistic projects into true collective therapies, windows open to an inner world that many believed had been closed off by the years. One of the pillars of their work is the Las Marianas women’s choir, made up of a group of grandmothers who. Defying the passage of time, sing hymns, traditional songs, and popular pieces with a moving force.
The choir’s name is no coincidence, Las Marianas. It is a tribute to the brave and determined women of the Mambi family. A symbol of resilience and feminine dignity. Inspired by this, these women, some with walking sticks, others with trembling but firm voices, have rescued songs from their youth. Reinvented boleros, narrated passages from their lives through music, and performed at schools, cultural centers, and community events.
The rehearsal isn’t just a rehearsal. It’s a ritual, laughter, memory. Soraya tunes with them, yes, but she also listens to them, comforts them, asks them about her distant grandson or the recipe for the dessert they love to share after singing. She has managed to transform this vocal space into a circle of affection, where culture intertwines with humanity.
Also Soraya has understood, like few others, that art is not a luxury, but a necessity. That the elderly need not only medicine and care, but also dreams, colors, and songs.
Moreover at a time when society often runs too fast to stop and look at the elderly. This instructor’s work is a tender slap in the face against indifference. She has taught us that in old age, the lights don’t go out. But rather we can light them up in a different way: with wisdom, beauty, and art.
Thanks to Soraya, the Cacocum grandparents’ home is not just a place to spend the day. It is a place where community is woven, where life is sung, and where every wrinkle is respected as a testament. And although her name hasn’t yet appeared in national headlines, her work is enormous. Because there is no greater reward than a recovered smile, a spontaneous hug, or a tear of gratitude after a song.
Finally there is something about her that cannot be measured with applause or diplomas. Perhaps it is her way of listening or singing. Perhaps it is her deep faith in the power of art to heal. The truth is that mornings at her grandparents’ house are no longer silent. They are days embroidered with love, musical notes, and memories that refuse to die.
By: Roxana Guisado Fernández
- KTP Company Implements Banking Programs - 4 de September de 2025
- Díaz-Canel holds meeting with President Xi Jinping in China - 4 de September de 2025
- Warmth Will Prevail Despite The Girl - 4 de September de 2025