12 - Tio Ismael and Tio Enrique

Last post you got a chance to meet Tio Roberto and Tia Mora.

Something I failed to mention; my Tia is the gentless soul, you ever care to meet. She always speaks good thing about everybody; no matter how despicable they may be. She remembers every birthday, anniversary and memorable occasion about everyone in the family. My Tio Roberto is probably the most fortunate man, ever, because he has my Tia Mora. Without her, he probably would not be half the man he is. Thank you Tia.

Next in line is Uncle Ismael; shorter in stature but with a great sense of humor. He was always known for riding a motorcycle and was seen often all over Havana. He would be called a pica-flor or a flower picker. In years gone by this term was affectionately given to men who chased after woman, from one to the next, city to city, breaking hearts everywhere he went. Uncle Ismael had a great love of mechanical things as well and had an insatiable desire to figure out machinery. This wonderful trait he would pass on to his son, Ezekiel.

Today, Tio Ismael, is suffering from a bit of dementia and prostate cancer. He begins his chemotherapy this week and as always his son is by his side.

Due to his dementia, Tio Ismael, confuses people and dates and occurrences. For example; he is convinced that my grandmother abandoned him while they were young. I don't profess to be an expert on all of our family history but I have discussed many issues with all of the immediate family members and they all agree; no such thing ever happened. On the contrary, she did many things to ensure their well-being. It might not all have turned out how she really wanted but she tried, as we shall see.

One other issue he seems to get confused; that my grandmother took his inheritance money that supposedly was left to all six kids by their grandfather. The sad truth is that there were some Spanish gold coins but the idle gossip says, a cousin and uncle stole it. Unfortunately, I have not been able to confirm this tale with any other branch of the family. I have confirmed, however, that my grandmother did not take the gold coins.

Finally the youngest of the boys, is Tio Enrique. He was the most gregarious of all. He could play several instruments and was a real prankster. Unfortunately, due to circumstances brought on by his own volition, I along with the rest of the family would loose respect for him.

When he and his family immigrated to the United States, it was by way of Spain. They would go on to live in Spain for over two years before they would be allowed to come directly to the United States.

During their stay in Spain, my Tio Roberto, by enlarge, supported him financially.

Prior to his admission into the United States my Tio Roberto would have to make sure and prove that he had a job to go to upon his arrival, that he had a place to live and that both the kids were enrolled in school. My Tio Roberto did all of this to ensure easy entry.

So upon his arrival, he went to work with Tio Roberto at the Ford Motor Corporation, in Mauhau, New York. Tio Roberto would pick him up and drop him off every day; this went on for years. One day, on there way home from the night shift, Tio Roberto fell asleep behind the wheel of his Ford Falcon. They crashed and were hurt very seriously; thank goodness that they didn’t hit any other car or pedestrian, they slammed into a tree.

Months after rehabilitation and recovery, Tio Roberto found out from his attorney that Uncle Enrique is suing him and his insurance company. Obviously this didn’t settle well with Uncle Roberto or the rest of the family. I'm convinced that Tio Roberto would have done everything in his power to make his brother whole. If that meant supporting him indefinitely, he would have; there is no doubt in my mind.

Well the end result was, the lawsuit went through and Tio Enrique kept all of the money. This created a terrible rift in the family and its now well over thirty years and the two have never spoken again.

Sometimes life has a funny way of molding you and making your deep-seated priorities surface. I will say this often throughout these pages, I am not here to judge or condemn. However, it is difficult to sympathize with someone, when his or her actions are deliberate and resolute; especially when your actions hurt your family.

Tio Roberto was injured emotionally more so than financially. He cared for his brother and his family for well over two years and was repaid with tremendous duplicity and ungratefulness. Well, you have met everyone with the exception of my sister and brother. In later chapters you'll get a chance to meet them.

In some of the upcoming posts, I hope to upload some pictures. Please come back and continue to share with me.