César y sus condiscípulos en su primer día de clases
Por estos días me corroe un profundo sentimiento de culpa. Mi nieto mayor, César, me dijo con un fuerte tono de reproche que le he mentido. Así, con todas sus letras: “Abuela, me mentiste, la escuela no es como tú decías”. Y lo peor de todo es que tiene razón: involuntariamente lo estafé cuando me dediqué a prepararlo para su iniciación en el mundo escolar. Permítanme compartir esto con ustedes.
César tiene 5 años y este curso comenzó a asistir al preescolar en una escuela del reparto Sevillano, en el municipio Diez de Octubre de la capital. Sus mayores nos habíamos dedicado a estimularlo durante los meses de verano para predisponerlo favorablemente de cara a esta nueva etapa de su vida en la que quedarían atrás los días de entrega total a los juegos y a los dibujos animados en casa, junto a su madre, para comenzar a pasar largas horas sentado en un aula, sometido a la disciplina que exige el proceso de aprendizaje y la socialización con un grupo de condiscípulos de los más diversos caracteres. También todos habíamos contribuido a un variado ajuar escolar en el que no faltaba nada.
La escuela sería –le dijimos– una experiencia maravillosa en la que aprendería nuevos juegos, haría más amigos, la maestra le enseñaría muchísimas cosas interesantes, aprendería también canciones que cantaría con los demás niños, modelaría figuritas de plastilina y armaría casas, barcos y cohetes con los juegos de construcción del aula. Queríamos, con nuestras mejores intenciones, que nuestro chiquillo discurriera sin tropiezos ni traumas por este necesario rito de paso que resulta trascendental en la vida de un niño. Yo, en particular, que tengo un gran ascendiente sobre él y le cuento muchas anécdotas de mi propia feliz niñez y de la de su padre, que él escucha siempre absorto, le pinté la escuela como el mundo de colores que sigue vivo en mi imaginación, inmune a los destrozos y perversiones del sistema.
No le mentí a mi nieto cuando le hablé del universo escolar que descubrí en septiembre de 1963, a mis cuatro años de edad. Para entonces mi padre trabajaba en la planta de sulfo-metales de Santa Lucía, Pinar del Río y allí asistí a la primera de las 11 escuelas primarias que tuve a lo largo de casi toda Cuba. Mi maestra de preescolar, Nela, es hasta hoy, en justicia, un personaje inolvidable. En mi aula de aquel pueblito pequeño había un piano de verdad que tocaba la propia maestra para acompañar las muchas canciones que todavía recuerdo con total precisión, había pelotas, juguetes, títeres, plastilina, lápices de colores. Aprendíamos casi sin darnos cuenta, cantando y jugando, bajo la guía de aquella señora dulce y afectuosa que todos queríamos y respetábamos.
Tampoco le mentí a César cuando le conté de la escuela de su padre, mi hijo mayor, al que llevé por primera vez a un aula en septiembre de 1984, yo más emocionada y nerviosa que él. Vivíamos en La Habana Vieja, mi patria chica, y aunque su aula de preescolar tenía también un viejo piano vertical, la maestra no sabía tocarlo (ya para entonces ninguna maestra sabía) y tampoco había tantos juguetes como en mi aula de 20 años antes, pero al menos quedaba la tradicional plastilina, juegos de armar, y los niños aprendían con canciones. Por otra parte, Hildita era una amorosa maestra que atesoraba en su pequeña figura ternura y paciencia enormes y hasta cierto punto suplía con su gracia e imaginación algunas de las carencias materiales de la escuela. Sé que mi hijo recuerda a Hilda con tanta gratitud y cariño como yo a Nela.
No es, pues, de extrañar, que la noche antes de asistir por primera vez a su escuela César no pudo conciliar el sueño a la hora acostumbrada. Revisaba una y otra vez su mochila con los implementos escolares para comprobar que no le faltara nada, se ponía y quitaba el uniforme hasta que su madre se vio precisada a guardarlo para que no lo ensuciara, preguntaba cuántas horas faltaban para que se hiciera de día. A las 6:30 am ya estaba en pie, agitado y ansioso y mucho antes de las 8:00 am estaba en el patio de la escuela junto a otros muchos escolares primerizos, tan orgullosos y contentos como él.
En el aula, lleno de expectativas
Han transcurrido los dos primeros meses de clases y la maestra de César ha estado frente a su aula poco más de una semana en total. Se dice que “tiene problemas personales”, “una hermana diabética en Camagüey”, “una madre anciana”. Quizás todo esto sea cierto, pero no justifica que la dirección de la escuela no haya buscado una maestra suplente. En su lugar, una auxiliar pedagógica trata de cubrir las formas poniendo a los niños una tarea tras otra. Es la única manera de poder reportar oficialmente que el programa lectivo de la revolución se cumple y que en Cuba todos los niños reciben instrucción.
Pero entre tanto, el preescolar de César está lejos de las expectativas que le sembré. Nada de juegos y cantos, nada de plastilinas ni juguetes. Nadie sabe decir con certeza cuándo regresará la maestra, ni cuánto tiempo estará en clases otra vez antes de volver a tener problemas personales más importantes que su trabajo. Los maestros son una especie en extinción en un país que ha visto destruirse una larga tradición pedagógica cuyo origen se remonta a los viejos tiempos coloniales. Se ha perdido la ética de una profesión hermosa por naturaleza.
Por eso César, mi nieto, ya no quiere ir a la escuela y me recrimina por lo que consideraba mis mentiras. Le expliqué que era cierto cuanto le había contado antes, así que él mismo ha propuesto una solución: “Mira, Abuela, mejor llévame a tu escuela y que me enseñe tu maestra”. Pensé en Nela, que a estas alturas pudiera haber muerto puesto que ya no era joven en 1963. Quizás su recuerdo alumbró entonces la respuesta que di a mi nieto: “Mejor te enseño yo misma aquí, en mi casa”. No es tan disparatado como parece: mi primera profesión fue la docencia. Así es como desde hace algún tiempo César va a su escuela a perder el tiempo y a aburrirse de lunes a viernes y los fines de semana yo le enseño las letras, los números, le repaso los colores, dibujamos, modelamos con plastilina, recortamos figuras geométricas, recitamos y cantamos mis viejas canciones de preescolar. También tenemos sesiones de lectura de cuentos, para que se interese pronto en aprender a leer, y destinamos también una tarde a pasear, para relajarnos. Así me aseguro que aprenda y, de paso, trato de superar mi terrible sentimiento de culpa.
Nota: Todos los nombres y situaciones que se refieren en el texto son rigurosamente reales.
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