Dear Uncle Ndumbe,
It’s such a shame to lose you at this time, unfortunately no death is timely. Like they say, God’s time is the best but we, your family understandably feel it’s quite too soon. But then such is life and we have to accept that God had decided to bring you home.
Firstly, ‘Prof’ as he was known by people so close to him, was a very intelligent and highly opinionated person. One specific thing I admired a lot about him was the amount of respect he commanded, even from ‘Jango’! Once I asked my father ‘what exactly is the age difference between you and uncle Ndumbe?’ and he replied ‘5 years’, and quite frankly I was utterly astounded.
My uncle was a man of repute and had a dignifying aura about him. He was highly influential with regards to medical education in Cameroon, and Africa at large. On a personal level, he was always willing to help and offer advice where necessary. I remember the last ‘heart-on-heart’ conversation I had with him, he told me his biggest concern was the health of my grandfather; Chief Kepe Ndumbe Martins and feared that his departure could be looming. Few months later, I hear the sad news that Professor Ndumbe is gone. Truthfully, my initial reaction was still one of disbelief and something inside me was still hoping, and praying that a miracle could transpire.
As a family, we are at the acceptance stage and as we mourn this great man’s death, my heart goes all out especially to my grandparents and his two lovely kids; Sobila and Seth. But what we, as a family must remember is this, he is in a better place, and although we have lost an inspirational member of us, God works in mysterious ways. We should also use this moment to remember late Rebecca Eyong, and keep them in our prayers. Togetherness is absolutely needed, and through that we should revere the priceless moments we all enjoyed with uncle Ndumbe.
At the end of the day, we all have a final destination and uncle Ndumbe happened to get to his destination rather too soon. In this light, the old cliché resurfaces; what exactly is life? This is because when you look at it from every point of view whatsoever, we are all just passers-by. Rest In Peace Uncle Ndumbe, you will be sorely missed.
Adieu,
Papi.
****************************************************************************
FROM MASANGO KEPE (NEPHEW)
|
Uncle, I still can’t believe I am writing a tribute because of your passing. Words cannot describe this difficult moment, but if this is the last time I get to say goodbye then I know I will do so with the knowledge that I consider myself blessed to have lived this life as your nephew.
You touched so many lives by your selfless and countless acts of kindness, always giving and never expecting any favours in return. Your dedication to a cause was what set you apart. For every institution you worked for, you laid the path for others to succeed.
The benefits of your hard work is a living testimony for the so many young men and women you took under your wings at a personal and professional level.
Uncle, you were and will always be an inspiration to myself, the entire family and anyone who worked with you. You have left a void in the family that will never be filled.
While we mourn today, we also take comfort in the fact that your mission on earth would have been fulfilled. We thank the Lord for your life and bade you farewell until we meet again,
Your Nephew,
Masango Kepe.
|
