The Future of My Nostalgia

the AZEL PERSPECTIVE Commentary on Cuba's Future, U.S. Foreign Policy & Individual Freedoms - Issue 242

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“The Future of Nostalgia” is a complex book by Svetlana Boym. Until her death in 2015, at the young age of 56, Boym was Professor of Slavic and Comparative Literature at Harvard University. Born in Leningrad, USSR (Now, once again, Saint Petersburg). Professor Boym’s work explores homesickness, particularly the nostalgia of Russian exiles escaping from communism. In this column, I borrow from her work as I consider parallels to the Cuban exile experience and to my own. Professor Boym defines nostalgia as a longing for a home that no longer exists or has never existed. “Nostalgia is a sentiment of loss and displacement, but it is also a romance with one’s own fantasy.” That is, we may feel nostalgia for a place, but we are actually yearning for a different time. Boym explores nostalgia for a place, but also our nostalgia “for the unrealized dreams of the past and visions of the future that became obsolete.”   Nostalgia is not melancholia, which is mostly concerned with individual consciousness. Nostalgia is more about our individual biography and the history of our nation. Nostalgia is about the relationship between our personal memory and the collective memory of our countrymen.  Nostalgia is about seeking “repetition of the unrepeatable, materialization of the immaterial.” The word nostalgia was coined by the Swiss doctor Johannes Hofer in his 1688 medical dissertation. The newly diagnosed disease, evident in displaced people of the time, was said to produce “erroneous representations that caused the afflicted to lose touch with the present. Longing for their native land became their single-minded obsession.” In those days, nostalgia was thought to be a demonstration of the patriotism of those who loved their homeland to the point of sickness. This “hypochondria of the heart” or mal de corazon was a disease curable with leeches, hypnotic emulsions, or opium, but the best remedy for nostalgia was a return to the homeland. Nostalgia has an interesting history from what was thought to be a curable disease in the 1600’s to today’s incurable condition of lost youth, and lost chances. The study of nostalgia still frustrates psychologists, sociologists, philosophers and other specialists.   Professor Boym distinguishes between two kinds of nostalgia that she labels as restorative and reflective. Restorative nostalgia evokes a national past and seeks a timeless reconstruction of the lost home, whereas reflective nostalgia focuses of the longing itself. Reflective nostalgia is more about our individual and cultural memory.   If we are a reflective nostalgic, we look at old photographs and tell family stories. As reflective nostalgics we miss the past, but we do not really want the past back because we recognize that the old homestead is destroyed, and we would not like it as it is now. On the other hand, if we are a restorative nostalgic, we want to “rebuild the lost home and patch up the memory gaps.” Restorative nostalgics do not recognize that the past may have been flawed. Restorative nostalgics, like many of my countrymen, have a cartoon-like recollection of history. For freedom-seeking exiles, the idea of freedom is initially limited to the concept of freedom from the oppression of their former governments. Exiles think of that freedom as constantly in danger. It is perhaps for this reason that exiles often appear to be more dedicated to the ideals of freedom than the natives of their adopted homelands. Yet, as exiles we do not renounce critical thinking even as we embrace a profound emotional bonding with our history. And although our inability to return home is a personal tragedy, it is also an enabling force. Professor Boym tells of a Russian saying that the past has become much more unpredictable than the future. The Cuban exile experience has lasted a lifetime and, as memories fade, our past has indeed become unpredictable. We do well to remember Emily Dickinson’s iconic poem, “Forever is Composed of Nows.”  Our exile nostalgia can be a creative emotion if we chose to be nostalgic not for the past the way it was, but for the past the way we could have made it.  Such is the future of my nostalgia. Please let us know if you  this article. We welcome your feedback. Abrazos,  Lily & José  (click on the name to email Lily or Jose) José Azel, Ph.D. José Azel left Cuba in 1961 as a 13 year-old political exile in what has been dubbed Operation Pedro Pan - the largest unaccompanied child refugee movement in the history of the Western Hemisphere.   He is currently dedicated to the in-depth analyses of Cuba's economic, social and political state, with a keen interest in post-Castro-Cuba strategies. Dr. Azel was a Senior Scholar at the Institute for Cuban and Cuban-American Studies (ICCAS) at the University of Miami, Jose Azel has published extensively on Cuba related topics. In 2012 and 2015, Dr. Azel testified in the U.S. Congress on U.S.-Cuba Policy, and U.S. National Security.  He is a frequent speaker and commentator on these and related topics on local, national and international media.  He holds undergraduate and masters degrees in business administration and a Ph.D. in International Affairs from the University of Miami. José along with his wife Lily are avid skiers and adventure travelers.  In recent years they have climbed Grand Teton in Wyoming, trekked Mt. Kilimanjaro in Tanzania and Machu Pichu in Peru.  They have also hiked in Tibet and in the Himalayas to Mt. Everest Base Camp. They cycled St. James Way (El Camino de Santiago de Compostela) and cycled alongside the Danube from Germany to Hungary and throughout southern France.  They have scuba dived in the Bay Islands off the Honduran coast and in the Galapagos Islands. Their adventurers are normally dedicated to raise funds for causes that are dear to them.  Watch Joe & Lily summit Kilimanjaro. Books by Dr. José Azel "Liberty for beginners is much more than what the title promises. It is eighty themes touched with the wisdom of a master, and the charm of an excellent communicator. Anyone that wishes to understand why countries do, or do not progress, will find in this book the best explanations. If it was in my power, this work would be required reading for all college and university students, and I would recommend its reading to politicians, journalists, and policymakers. With this book Azel accomplishes what was achieved in France by Frédéric Bastiat, and in the United States by Henry Hazlitt: brings together common sense with intelligent observation, and academic substance. Stupendous" Carlos Alberto Montaner Buy Now "Libertad para novatos es mucho más de lo que promete el título. Son ochenta temas tocados con la sabiduría de un maestro y la amenidad de un excelente comunicador. Cualquier adulto que desee saber por qué progresan o se estancan los pueblos aquí encontrará las mejores explicaciones. Si estuviera en mis manos, esta obra sería lectura obligatoria de todos los estudiantes, tanto de bachillerato como universitarios, pero, además, se la recomendaría a todos los políticos y periodistas, a todos los policy makers. Azel logra con este libro lo que Frédéric Bastiat consiguiera en Francia y Henry Hazlitt en Estados Unidos: aunar el sentido común, la observación inteligente y la enjundia académica. Estupendo." Carlos Alberto Montaner Compre Aqui In Reflections on Freedom, José Azel brings together a collection of his columns published in prestigious newspapers.  Each article reveals his heartfelt and personal awareness of the importance of freedom in our lives.  They are his reflections after nearly sixty years of living and learning as a Cuban outside Cuba. In what has become his stylistic trademark, Professor Azel brilliantly introduces complex topics in brief journalistic articles. Buy Now En Reflexiones sobre la libertad José Azel reúne una colección de sus columnas publicadas en prestigiosos periódicos. Cada artículo revela su percepción sincera y personal de la importancia de la libertad en nuestras vidas. Son sus reflexiones después de casi sesenta años viviendo y aprendiendo como cubano fuera de Cuba.  En lo que ha resultado ser característica distintiva de sus artículos, el Profesor Azel introduce con brillantez complejos temas en  breves artículos de carácter periodístico. Compre Aqui Mañana in Cuba is a comprehensive analysis of contemporary Cuba with an incisive perspective of the Cuban frame of mind and its relevancy for Cuba's future. Buy now Pedazos y Vacíos is a collection of poems written in by Dr. Azel in his youth. Poems are in Spanish. Buy now

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