I appreciate everyone's participation at the memorial. I believe we still have a lot to share with each other. Jeff's death is both a hole in our lives and an entrance to another world; for we each must face our loss, but also the knowledge that we too will leave this earth like our dear brother has just done.
Many times during his illness as I was leaving, jeff and I would take a few moments to revel in the mystery of death. Even though his appeared obviously more certain and close, we had to admit, one never knew, and I could get wiped out on the way home. Even though jeff seemed more in on it; in the end he faced the same mystery we all do. I’d leave telling him that he was simply the first of our friends to be voyaging out into the unknown beyond the form.
For me now, jeff is becoming more absent and more present simultaneously; disappearing further into the emptiness and the fullness. The particular identity is preserved as pictures in the mind now and events the memory says occured, while the real flavor of jeff, has the same sweet fragrance as truth, and that will always be one with everything else that is one.
There is no way to spiritualize or trivialize the effect jeff had on many of our lives. He was just jeff; ;just a beautiful wave of love washing up 0n our shores. Was the man perfect? Did he not have flaws! Of course, he did, he possessed a lifetime of human imperfections, yet he constantly rose above them to shed the light of love on those he encountered.
Jeff’s great gift to us was his love of connection, communion, chatter, laughing, talking, celebrating, enjoying; and now it's up to each of us to share in that family tradition.
No one ever really knows what disappears into nothingness.
—Love, Joe
