National Anthems

As the plane landed from Miami in Holguin everyone clapped spontaneously. Obviously most if not all were Cubans. I thought about how attached we all are to our native country even as we have been alienated from it for decades. I wondered what makes Cubans so patriotic?  Why this attachment to place?  Why do we feel this kinship with each other?  

I felt this at the Miami airport just listening to the particular way Cubans speak Spanish. I met a Cuban waiting in line for the flight to Cuba who is from Bayamo. We talked about the historic significance of the small town.

The town square is a beautiful park with several monuments.  One is erected to Perucho Figueredo, the author of the Cuban national anthem.  The words of the anthem appear in bronze on a large plaque embedded in white marble.  Here are the words of the first few lines:

¡Al combate, corred, Bayameses!, Que la patria os contempla orgullosa; No temáis una muerte gloriosa, Que morir por la patria es vivir.	Hasten to battle, men of Bayamo! The motherland looks proudly to you; Do not fear a glorious death, Because to die for the motherland is to live.
Second stanza
En cadenas vivir es vivir en afrenta y oprobio sumido, Del clarín escuchad el sonido; ¡A las armas, valientes, corred!	To live in chains is to live, In dishonour and ignominy, Hear the call of the bugle; Hasten, brave ones, to arms!

The battle of Bayamo was fought nearby and was a great victory for the Cubans who wanted to be free from Spain.  Figueredo fought in that battle and was compelled by his fellow fighters to write an anthem to commemorate the victory.  He did so right on his horse!  Two years later, he was captured by the Spaniards and sentenced to death by firing squad.  Just before his death, he shouted the words to his anthem; "To die for the motherland is to live!"  

The above lyrics and adapted facts taken from Wikipedia