Ramón

Ramón was abuelo's dad, my great-grandfather and he married Indalecia, his cousin.

For at least 3 generations (the ones that abuela remembered plus her own), cousins intermarried which (FYI) may have contributed quirks and/or gifts to the family gene pool. Did they live in the Cuban equivalent of the West Virginia hollers? Some lived in the rural area around Remedios but others lived in town. The records show there were plenty of other people around but they also indicate that the Spanish settlers preferred those who came from the same area or city as themselves.

After Indalecia's death in the re-concentration camp, Ramón married Nemesia. Ramón ended up with 11 children: 9 tall, strapping men and 2 women. Just one short of the 12 tribes, he was indeed a family patriarch and seemingly a good man because the only thing that is told of him is his tragicomic death.

There he was walking along the street in Remedios. A father, grandfather and great-grandfather and a healthy man at the very venerable age of 106. 106 and healthy!! And there comes a man riding Lizzie down the street. This man had just gotten his first Ford Model T, had hopped into it and, as the Ford ad said "Foot it'n go!" (reason why Cubans call the jallopies "fotingo"), he footed it and went riding the streets of Remedios. When he came upon Ramón crossing the street, the fotingo man could not figure out how to brake. It is told that he desperately tried - indeed! the importance of good user interface - but slapstick became tragedy.

As it is told, no one in the family, including abuelo and his siblings, held a grudge against fotingo man. What they did is mourn Ramón and tell the tale of his slapstick death which now has been told again.