"During a telephone conversation last weekend, our mutual friend Doug informed me of the sudden and terrible situation involving Rick. I send my sincerest and deepest condolences for your loss and my own snapshot memory of Rick.
"I am a longtime peace activist and knew Rick through the peace vigil I helped to start in the Mahoning Valley. I knew him to be kind, deeply aware of humanitarian and environmental issues. We also shared an interest in photography. And we included Rick's photographs in our group effort, the book, No War No More, which I edited.
"I recall always being impressed by Rick's sensitivity, altruism and what I call deep quietude, a quality that as a practicing Buddhist, I find deeply moving and imperative in our ever-shifting, often abrupt and unkind world. I took a photo of Rick in the early days of our vigil that seemed to me beautiful, as it spoke not only to who I thought Rick was as a human being, but what I believe to be the true heart of the activist and seeker of truth and beauty, which I believe Rick possessed. The photo shows Rick holding his sign simply, as if it was a part of him, and his head and eyes are raised, looking at the sky/stars/heavens/the expanse of life that were a constant part of his heart/mind inquiry. That is the image of Rick that I will always hold -- of a boy/man complete in his state of inquiry, his human aliveness, gazing upward.
"May you be surrounded by goodness, peace and love, and may all the good Rick brought to you remain a part of you as long as you shall live."
Arya-Francesca Jenkins
photo by Richard Pirko
No comments:
Post a Comment