in memoriam
After a long and courageous battle with cancer, Natalia Rae has passed away today.
I will always remember her as a light. As one who always supported the underdog. As a dear friend.
For those of you who knew her and loved her, there will be a ceremony for her at her home in Larkspur for the next couple of days. Chris Price has been organizing this and I am taking the liberty, with her permission, of reprinting her letter here:
From Chris Price:
i've just learned that Ronnie Haire, who has been on the Esalen Grounds crew for the past many years, took his own life today. wow. i am so saddened and surprised by this. prayers and love to ronnie and all the esalen family and others who were touched by his life. light a candle if you feel so moved.
a recent DANIEL BIANCHETTA photograph below:
'our own' John Callahan (left) and Ronnie Haire (right)
Above is a DANIEL BIANCHETTA photograph
It is with sadness that I have learned that Weems's beloved son, Wallace Westfeldt has died Friday morning in a snowboarding accident in Aspen. For all of us on iThou, it was clear how much love there was shared between father and son... how much common spirit and passion for life they both had. Our heart and love goes out to Weems and family during these very difficult times.
With abundant love, on behalf of the community,
--- Albert
From the Rocky Mountain News:
"Aspen native and snowboarder Wallace Westfeldt liked spinners, bonks and card tricks, according to one of his sponsors' Web sites.
He enjoyed powder days, sunny days, park days, big air, small air, winning - and New Zealand, according to another Web site.
My mother died at 1:20 PM today. I was present as were my daughter, sister and brother-in-law. We were guided by mom's nurse, Linda who I consider to be my Guardian Angel. Mom died with presence and dignity. She waited for my sister's arrival and died an hour later. This past ten days have been the most extraordinary of my life. I can not even say how I've changed and yet I know that life will never be the same.
We sat with mom for two additional hours awaiting the funeral home. As is our tradition, the body was not left alone. I am proud of my family and proud of my mother's life. She will be buried on Friday morning at 11 AM.
Namaste and gratitude for the support and love I have felt throughout this ordeal.
In loving memory of Ivy and all that you touched in this world.
Kathleen thank you for letting me in to your heart so easily. May you rest in peace.
Connection of Souls
Peter Yarrow – of legendary folk trio Peter, Paul & Mary – performs at Marylhurst University for 14-year-old and her classmates...
This headline from our local paper describes the performance I saw on Monday afternoon that touched me so deeply. I described in another blog how touched I was by Peter Yarrow's love and compassion, and the songs he sang accompanied by his friend Rebecca.
Tonight Rebecca is dead. Apparently killed by drug overdose given to her by her mother who was found along side her, drugs close at hand. No sign of struggle. No break in. No random violence. Just a mother and daughter I saw embracing and celebrating life four days ago, dead tonight leaving a gaping hole in the universe where there was true heart and real love.
Shan Coffel was a boy, not quite a man. I can not believe he is dead. He was just twenty years old. My kids grew up with him. I spent a decade working and playing with his family and just as my children were an integral part of the scene, so was Shan. His dad Jimmy and his mom Julie had a rocky relationship. I remember when his little brother Colton was born. Shan was the apple of his Aunt and Uncle's eyes, the center of their universe in a lot of ways. He was so loved, cherished by his family for his vitality and mischievous good nature. I remember him well and post this article in grave sorrow for a shocking loss I just learned of yesterday.
These folks were my friends. My heart aches for them.
T he news item reduced it to three sentences.
http://davidzeller.org
My masters thesis (A Quest for Spirituality: The Jewish Woman Then and Now) is dedicated to a number of people; Rabbi David Zeller is one.
What a loss. I thought of Rabbi David Zeller tonight as we sat. His chanting was magical. I had two cassette tapes of his...goodness only knows where they are now. Perhaps I can find them. I thought I would "google" him to buy his tapes anew. You would all love them...Ruach has a haunting melody that stays with me in quiet times and has for 25 years.
I studied with David in Palo Alto when I attended the Gestalt Institute in SF and studied at CIIS. I drove all over for classes. It was a wonderful time. He taught me Kabbalah and even now I recall so much of what he taught me.