The lifetime of Katiusa’s sciences
I’m Ydarlis Katiusa Casanova, call me Kat. My name is inspired by Russian culture. Ten years ago I discovered this name was inspired in a Russian song and also there is a bomb missile call like this.
A kid in love with sciences living in Venezuela.
I was born on a quiet and late night of September 18th of 1993 in San Cristóbal City. I born in Venezuela’s frontier from Colombia, so my life was very connected with the neighbor country. I grew up traveling with my father Ramón, my mother Zulay and my sister Daniela often went to Colombian nearest cities. At first it was very productive and affordable because Venezuelan coin the Bolivar had a lot of value in Colombia.
Along with this, I grew up as a kid in love with science. My dad was chemistry proficient. He was also a passionate chemistry teacher. Mom was an English and school teacher too. She taught me English at a very young age. So I grew up in a home where education was a treasure.
My parents make me fall in love with books, music, languages, and science. Little Katiusa wanted to be a scientist like a dad, I started making some experiments first like exploring my curiosity but after at 9 years old I participated in a Science Meeting for kids in my state.
The first year, I made a skin cream, my father helped me with the chemical trials and mom with the research. Next year, I create my soap with animal grease and went to the national science meeting. But at well as I grew up I felt more interested in social sciences and poetry and writing. I became an actress in school. I decided to study Social Communication in despite I loved a lot the science. Writing became my passion.
Changing seasons
All the frontier economic activity changed. Our coin went to the deepest ocean of economics and everything gets expensive. We continued going to Colombia despite this, we could cross the frontier in the car so it was always an amazing experience go to Colombia.
But then, the cars cross stopped. And the frontier went closed totally. The chance we have of getting food, clothes and the freedom winds from Colombia was gone.
Studying in a national and public university is an honor but also it’s facing some troubles like protests, stops, and serious acts of violence against students as it is frequently in Venezuela. So, I lost almost two years in all the Venezuelan strikes and troubles of living in the dictator regimen of Chávez.
But Chavez died, and it didn’t change anything because his legacy was all around the country trying to destroy everything.
During this crisis, in 2014 my sister Daniela decided to go to Ireland for studying English and try abroad’s living experience. Dani started studying in a college but then all the support for Venezuelans through the Cadivi system went down, she was literally in a delicate situation.
But she fought. She founded little part-time jobs and she starts doing everything she could to stay in Ireland. She did it. At the same time I started my first job as a writer. It was freelance work.
Everything upside down
But our dad gets sick in 2015, he was diagnosed with a very advance liver cancer, the doctors said that metastasis was on his stomach and colon also.
This situation broke everybody’s heart. But we keep trusting and believing in God. My dad started with soft chemotherapy treatment and his body received it so well. The tumor became smaller. He never stopped giving classes.
In 2016, one year after the diagnostic all the Casanovas get back together again for two months, at that time the frontier with Colombia was closed for Venezuelan orders, so Daniela went out of the country walking with her luggage and all the other casanovas couldn’t join her to the airport because the place used to be a highly concurring frontier now was surrounded by spikes and military
But apart from the frontier closure. Everything, gets better in our family life.
I became a passionate girl about writing and journalism, I moved to Caracas for an internship. And I fell in love with this vibrant and wild city. I start officially working there, and stay in the big city for over 1 year and a half.
But dad started to get seriously sick again, they can’t find again the chemotherapy that the father needs so I decided to get back to San Cristóbal, and start working remotely.
Together in the perfect equation
All the Casanovas get back together in Venezuela on this December of 2018. Daniela now was living in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and she came. We fully enjoyed two months together in the family. Now the frontier was open but only for walkers.
Daniela went out of the country through Colombia as millions of Venezuelans did. Dad accompanied her with all the family to Cucuta, just for saying goodbye. She returned to Buenos Aires on February 18th. I get my graduation in Social Communication on March 16th of this year, Eight years lately. All my family was with me that Friday. But on March 30th, exactly fifteen days after my graduation, my beloved and amazing father passed away because of cancer metastasis. We couldn’t find the chemotherapy that he had need. He died in peace, and full of love. All his students honor him at these last days of life.
My sister couldn’t come to Venezuela, but she found supporting friends in Argentina to go through all of this. All the family finds a way through all the pain: The love. The love that changed the world and keeps us alive. The love that lives even after death. The love our dad gave us. So these hard days were filled with love.
Experiencing new sciences
Traveling and writing became a way of moving forward. My mom and I became a good pair team. She started to cook bakery. I did little travels. I started a master’s in digital journalism, I get a lot of work as a Community Manager and as a writer but I continued doing the job I loved, being a reporter for Noticias.com.ve.
I had interview amazing people in this job, but overall, Venezuelan entrepreneurs who believe in their country. People like Juan José Pocaterra from Vikua, Los Amigos Invisibles, Carlos Poletto, and a lot of brilliant Venezuelans who can share their stories in special interviews with me, makes me recover the passion for country and job.
One of my writers’ inspiration is Isabel Allende. I love how she can make gold of what she lived. I always connect with her books. One day I write to her. And she answers me, I know maybe it’s her team but that was amazing because she told me what had happened with her books’ characters.
I’m a podcast believer. Seriously, I think it’s an amazing tool to educate yourself. I do cycling and photography. I have a personal blog As Told by Kat where I write.
I’m 26 years old of being a Katiusa in this world. And part of me also wants to be a scientist but the writer part it’s wilder. I think I’ll find a way to be both.
