David Bowie's widow Iman has opened up about the difficulty of grieving for the beloved rock icon while he is being mourned by millions of fans worldwide.
The Somalian-born model has been mourning the loss of her husband, who died aged 69 in January, 2016 following a battle with cancer. The couple, who have a daughter Alexandra 'Lexi', 17, met in October, 1990 and wed in Tuscany, Italy in 1992.
In a feature on Vogue.com in which she looked back at her many editorials for the fashion magazine, Iman spoke in depth for the first time about how she is coping following the passing of her husband of 24 years.
"Some months ago, the stars demanded David’s presence," she wrote of the rock icon, who recorded and released his final album Blackstar before his death at age 69. "We surrendered a husband, a father, a father-in-law, a friend, a mentor, and all the nameless daily ecstasies that occur between people who love one another.
"The outpouring of grief over David’s passing has helped me tremendously, though sometimes I’ve been at odds with it, too: Universal grieving for your life partner can also keenly deepen your own sense of all that you’ve lost," she added.
The 62-year-old mother-of-two continued to pay tribute to the British rocker and her growing family, which is rapidly expanding.
"David gave me the most exciting, touching, and deliriously loving 24 years. Still, it was not enough - shockingly brief. And although I’ll never get used to losing him, David is nonetheless hiding in plain sight.
"We have our beautiful daughter, Lexi, now seventeen; a year ago, David’s son, (film director) Duncan (Jones), and his wife, Rodene, gave birth to a son, Stenton; my daughter Zulekha and her husband, Jason, will bless us with a baby this summer.
"With this burgeoning family, I’ve added a new title to my list: Nana. So I’m Mom and Nana now, while striving to live up to my name in spirit and example; to have iman; to always have faith."
"As for David, I have perfect iman that we’ll be together again. Love doesn’t cease; love reshapes," she ended the tribute.
