Surrounded by love, Javier faces life

I had heard of him, his niece Madai Cruz told me that the movements of his uncle are involuntary, that everyone who knows him has learned to love and respect him to the point of not seeing different, and Javier Chiú Fernandez, is able to conquer hearts with his cheerful smile and that indescribable way to worship her mother Magdalena Fernandez Valdes.

Javier inhaled meconium at birth into his lungs, following the unexpected his family spent many sleepless hours. He fought and was saved. In his long history of consultations and repeated visits to hospitals nationwide, the doctors who treated him just gave him only nine years as life expectancy.

I am sure that the story that I share with you all brings sadness to our souls, but maternal love was so powerful that the protagonist of this page lives in the vastness of a world full of affection, attention and much tenderness.

The baby was born on February 4th, 1984, and he celebrated his 31st birthday this 2015 surrounded by friends, neighbors and family. The words of his mother Magdalena when telling us how the life of Javier was made us all tremble, but that strength of will that characterizes him rejoices also making possible for her son, who devotes all the time would observe her and with restless hands scrolls his face as a sign of eternal gratitude.

Despite his condition, Mom Magdalena, a teacher, deals with educating Javi, as she affectionately calls him. With the support of the educator Angela Rodriguez they managed to teach him to manipulate the cassette radio, to record cassettes, to pronounce some names of his nearby loved ones, to turn on the TV, to channel up and down using the remote control, to play dominoes and to also understand some plays inflicted by the players in baseball.

Javier communicates using sign language and sounds when thirsty and enjoys the magic of music to the full. He likes songs by the Salvadoran Alvaro Torres, especially 'Chiquita mía' and is faithful fan of Victor Mesa, head coach of Matanzas baseball team. His passion for the national sport summons him to visit stadiums and enjoy every detail.

He has photos with the athlete Omar Linares, well- known worldwide as 'the child Linares', also with the popular artist Arnaldo y su Talisman and other pictures with her sister Lisyanis Chiú, his nephews, neighbors and residents of the community of Borbollón in Colombia, Las Tunas.

Javier Chiú Fernández can’t take care of himself anymore; his existence bears the stamp of family devotion and the Cuban health system. He is member of the Association of the Physically Impaired (ACLIFIM, by its acronym in Spanish) and stands out as one of the most enthusiastic members. He has received humanitarian aid from the international Brigade Pastors for Peace and never misses the activities planned by the group that represents it.

Then, it is worth ending this legend with a Marti’s phrase that sums it all up: "There is no greater difficulty that enough love would not conquer."