Last week, our campus celebrated the presentation of the book: “Dejame ganar esta batalla” written by the amazing professor and cancer fighter Raquel Brailowsky. The book is about her long fight against Breast Cancer. Prof. Brailowsky is a sociologist and a loyal faculty member in the Social Science Department since 1981. Her book is a collection of poems retelling her personal experiences in her fight against Breast Cancer and how her life changed since her diagnosis in 2012. The book is dedicated to her beloved daughter Elena Isabel because she gives her many reasons to keep living, to keep fighting and above all, Elena gives her hope.
The book presentation was crowded with students, faculty members, the author’s friends, and many more people from the rest of our university community. The organizers have estimated that over 260 people attended the event. Two of Prof. Brailowsky’s colleagues and close friends introduced the author and the book. Dr. Gloria Asencio, from the Department of Social Sciences, introduced the author with an emotional recount of Prof. Brailowsky’s life as an academic and a friend. Dr. Rosario Méndez, from the Department of Languages and Literatures, was in charge of introducing the book.
The book itself contains 32 poems, beautifully written. They detail her battles and certainly they will tug at the reader’s emotions. They describe the painful process behind chemotherapy treatments, mammography tests, the recovering process, and the overall, soul-wringing fight against cancer. Some of the poems are hopeful verses that emotionally highlight the darker, uglier facets of this disease such as those about her wishing to be reborn, and the pain and loneliness that cancer patients are more than likely to suffer.
After the proper introductions, Prof. Brailowsky read some of the poems from her book to the audience, and the audience reactions ranged from empathy and tears, to happiness and a feeling of strength. The poems the author chose to share with the audience included: “A modo de confesión”, “Canción de Autoconocimiento”, “En batalla”, and “Renacer”. Three of her colleagues, who are also dearly close friends read the poems “Prisionera Coherente”, “Fucsia”, and “Así es esto”. The author ended the presentation reading two more poems “Imagen ante el espejo” and “Despedirme de ti”. She received a roaring applause from her audience and proceeded to the book sign-and-greet.
Here’s a quote from one of the poems she shared with her audience:
“En Batalla”
Apuesto a mi espíritu
Tenaz, guerrero, de combate
Ante tanto dolor de dolores
Este ánimo de vida
Me empuja directo a la batalla.
Destila encantaciones
Primordiales en la lid
Quejas pasionales
Cual consagradas balas
Listas a perforar el miedo
Requiebran el temor
En defensa de la vida.
No se detiene en su arrojo
Acepta brioso la pelea
Un tajito aquí
Un tajo allá
Un pedazo de carne
Una libra de pago
Un cuerpo corajudo
Belicioso en su contienda.
Carga en su empuje
La semilla ingrata
De mujeres ancestrales
Ellas estuvieron aquí
Las que perdieron la batalla
Las que sobrevivieron
Demonios envalentonados
Dueñas del último aliento
Amazonas en busca de paz.
Professor Brailowsky is an example of a phenomenal woman because of her warrior stance against cancer, demonstrating through her actions and words how she’s a fighter and revealing how much of an inspirational woman she is. I can’t wait to read more from her book; and I personally, and highly recommend it be added to anyone’s reading list.