Welcome
Welcome to the website for my two memoirsThe House Next Door and Illuminating Family. These complementary memoirs trace the history of my family back to the late fourteenth century. Closer to our times my grandparents eventful lives moved from Catalunya and Zamora, Spain, to Cuba and ultimately to the United States. They were the García Fernández from Santiago and Guantánamo, and the Ràfols Insenser from Barcelona.
I have considered the particular conditions of immigrants because of the complex immigration history in this family. Patience, audacity, and perseverance, for example, are being explored as conditions for these immigrants’ successes. Most of the immigrations were from small communities in Spain.
After almost fifty years of research in Spain, Cuba, and the United States, Illuminating Family and The House Next Door were written in 2001 and 2026 respectively. Two unforgettable and fruitful trips to Spain provided access to many Ràfols family documents which helped clarify many unknown family issues. Interviews and conversations with family members on both sides of the Atlantic provided key information for both memoirs.
Cuba and its complex and fascinating history appears as an important protagonist in both memoirs. Its allurement and turbulent history often serve as back drop for many members of the family. In those cases it often illuminates their personalities and their reactions to difficult events.
The Castro revolution, its aftermath, and consequences for our family, is an important part of this story. After many years of hesitations my family finally emigrated to the United States after losing their significant properties and businesses. Ultimately, the entire family would become immigrants, one more time, as they exiled to the United States.
Many would ask about my purpose in trying to know and document my ancestors. My answer is “to better know who are we.”
Welcome
Welcome to the website for my memoir Illuminating Family. I have been living with the idea of writing this book for almost fifty years and the decade spent researching and writing it has been exhilarating. The challenging process included two unforgettable and fruitful trips to Spain and opened doors to unexpected contributions from many, including family members from both sides of the Atlantic.
Many would ask about my purpose of spending so much time trying to better know my ancestors. My answer is “to enrich and enhance the knowledge of who we are.”
In addition to being a powerful family document, Illuminating Family recounts and uncovers the adventures and riddles of a complex family. It also brings to light such universal human conditions as adversity, grit, survival, identity, and ultimately success.