Saturday, January 8, 2022
Dear Bill,
I remember meeting you and Sara not too long after you moved here to The Cedars. It was at a dinner at the Cedars Club House for people living in our street. You, Sara, Joan and I shared the table. I was glad to share the table with you and Sara as I knew of you but I wanted to meet both of you. It was a memorable occasion. You and I engaged in a very interesting conversation about my experiences working at Duke and UNC. I felt very comfortable taking with you and must have said more than I needed to say but I could not hold back on my admiration, high opinion and respect for UNC. I cherish the years I spent at UNC.
I noticed that Sara barely participated in the dinner conversation that night. I attributed this to the interest that you and I had in our own conversation not allowing other people to take part in it. This I regret. Obviously, Sara’s progressive intellectual decline, not evident to me then, had already began its relentless and inevitable course. I did not get to appreciate the depth and diversity of her talents. Regrettably, I never got to know Sara as a person.
Immensely fortunate for you, your daughters, your sons-in-law, your grandchildren, and the rest of your family to have spent a life lifetime knowing her. You all lived in different places, travelled, and faced difficult and joyful situations but she was at the front of them with you. Surely for the last few years she could not walk alone but she did not have to. You became her shadow, her support and always walked next to her. She never had to walk alone. We, your neighbors, admired that.
I missed not getting to know Sara but I rejoice thinking that the wonderful person she was, she spent her life with you, your children and their families.
Sara will rest in peace.
Sincerely,
Gustavo
10.08.22
