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The photograph I made of the two elementary school girls titled “The Children of Cuba” personifies a culture of love, friendship, and peace. The same is true for my photograph titled “Colorblind,” which features three teenage friends with a different ethnic mix of Afro-Cuban and Spanish-Cuban blood. Even though there is prejudice at the government level, on the streets, among friends and working-class Cubans, there is acceptance across all Cubans, white or black (as they refer to themselves). “All Smiles” is another favorite of mine, photographed on a Sunday morning while walking Central Havana. These Cubans were happy to smile and express their love. Glad that I was interested in documenting their lives in a photograph. My photograph of my dear friend Israel, titled “Robbery in Progress,” is a beautiful story about Cuban kindness. I was walking the streets of rural Trinidad when I noticed this older man climbing through a side window of a small house. I jokingly yelled out, “robbery, robbery!” He laughed and said that he had locked himself out of his house. That was the day I met Israel Gonzalez, 85 years young. I was surprised by how good his English was. He told me stories of his trips to the United States, visiting family, and spoke about when he lived in Havana. Our endearing friendship only grew from there. Whenever I returned to Trinidad, he was eager to prepare lunch and serve me Cuban coffee. He was so poor, yet he would go out of his way to selflessly please me. Israel passed away this past November 10 from Covid. I’ve been heartbroken ever since. There are hundreds more of these stories and photographs in my book Vanishing Cuba. Three hundred, to be exact. My book is indeed a large-format, 348-page coffee table photo book, but it’s also a beautiful storytelling book, each written in both English and Spanish. My stories speak about a magical Cuba. It is a unique culture that will change and even vanish over time, as all cultures do when they transition into the modern world. I hope you enjoy my book. It’s only been out now for two weeks, and I’m already very proud of the reviews on our website. Please go to VanishingCuba.com or RedOctopusPublishing.com to read more and order the book. It’s available in the Silver Edition, Deluxe Edition, and the collectors series, Reserve Edition.