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The Cuban actress and comedian Zajaris Fernández celebrated her 17 years of life in the United States this Friday with an emotional message on Instagram, where she expressed her gratitude to the country for giving her freedom and for healing the wounds left by the Cuban dictatorship.
Zajaris arrived in Miami on April 17, 2009, when he was 24 years old, on what he described as the most painful day of his life.
"On a day like today, 17 years ago, I left 24 years of life behind, tore away dreams, abandoned a marriage, and saw many loved ones for the last time," he wrote in his post.
She described that 45-minute trip as one made "with a broken soul, filled with many fears, doubts, and uncertainties," and remembered that upon arrival, she wondered how she would physically recognize her father, from whom she had been separated for 21 years.
"It has been the saddest and most painful day of my existence," he/she stated.
Her early years in Miami were marked by extreme hardship: she worked as a waitress and even slept in her car in a parking lot.
After seven years of effort, he managed to join Canal 41 de Miami and resume his artistic career, which in Cuba had included programs such as "Alegrías de Sobremesa" and "¿Jura decir la verdad?"
In November 2018, she obtained U.S. citizenship through naturalization, announcing it at the time with the phrase: "Well, now it's official, I am an American citizen, I feel very happy."
In her post this Friday, accompanied by photographs where she holds her Naturalization Certificate and an American flag in front of the Grove Key Marina in Coconut Grove, Miami, Zajaris reflected on what those 17 years have meant.
"Today, after 17 years, I am grateful to this great country for the opportunity to become FREE, more humane, to learn how to use my money to do and achieve what I want without anyone controlling or questioning me about where, how, and why," she wrote.
He acknowledged that the process of adaptation was tough, but he was emphatic: "It is true that it is hard, it is sad to remove one heart and put in another, but in this life, freedom is priceless."
The actress also listed what she built on U.S. soil: loves, friends, jobs, seven dogs, several cars, and a house, in addition to having traveled to parts of the world.
"Today I cry for all that could not be 17 years ago, but I celebrate the life I deserve," she expressed.
He directed a direct thanks to the United States for healing the wounds left by the dictatorship: "Thank you, United States of America, for every wound inflicted by the dictatorship where God decided I would be born, here I have healed them."
He closed his message with a wish for the Cubans who remain on the island and a straightforward political statement: "I hope the people from where I come from can one day experience the same without having to live with their hearts full of memories, that they can enjoy a Christmas with everything and everyone together at the table. DOWN WITH THE DICTATORSHIP".
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