Simon’s namesake
Simon got his middle name from my grandfather, Oscar de Jesus Duque. Papito died July 18 in Bogota at age 93, five days after his first great-grandchild was born. Cancer had already stolen his mobility and energy, so it’s not a sad death.
It sounds something out of a Garcia Marquez novel, but we think having a namesake helped Papito let go. My aunt Ellie says he even talked about one last trip to the States to meet him. She says he was scared and Simon Oscar let him make peace with dying.
The only sad part is that my mom couldn’t go down to Bogota for the funeral because she doesn’t have her passport with her.
I hope Simon Oscar shares his great-grandfather’s sense of adventure and his insatiable appetite for life.
Papito and Mom (Oscar and Madeline), Joanna's college graduation, 2007