Identidades in English No 1, February 2014 | Page 67

or religious scholars know that mariners could not see the shore because it was filled with trees. We who were on the shore could not see the horizon, and it was necessary to come to an agreement with Oggún, who symbolizes work, so he would clear the trees on the shore so the ones here could see over there, and those there could see over here. It is always Oggún’s job to clear the shoreline trees; it is a form of communication, since communication is not only verbal, but also happens through sight and thought. And when there is a wall of any sort that keeps people from seeing, there is undeniably no communication. Oggún, intelligently uses Orula’s works to mark and clear the shoreline with his prodigious machete. Then it was possible for the ships to see the shore, and the 66 people on the shore to see the ships, which from what we understand of the document, meant that those of us here and those there could have communication with each other. Yet, Cuba is no longer the sacred lagoon of Lydia Cabrera, Teodoro Díaz Fabelo and Rómulo Lachatañere. It is also the sacred lagoon of Ifá celebrity priests and santeros like Facundo Sevilla, Remigio Herrera Adechina, Nicolás Angarica, Félix Palucha, Femina Gómez, Consuelo Chancleter, Aida la Dulce and Isidra Virola. Many Cubans have faith that the island is on the verge of new dawns and that the fresh waters of Yemayá offer a bit of hope and tranquility.