This month marks the 50th anniversary of the Cuban Missile Crisis, a standoff that brought the United States and the Soviet Union to the brink of nuclear war. Today, the missiles are long gone, as is the threat of nuclear annihilation. However, the gap between the two nations remains, prompting much discussion in this country about when and how to move forward, given the rigid US policy still in place.

This is also the 50th anniversary of the day my childhood in Cuba was blown apart by Fidel Castro’s revolution.