with death we celebrate life

[rhubarbtart]

I spoke at Davey's memorial service on sunday afternoon
& it wasn't as difficult as I thought it would be.
Inspired by a lucid conversation I had with Davey
while he was hospitalized
he spoke to me about his idea of heaven & the afterlife.
He said it is like a beautiful Kerouac scroll painting,
that it symbolizes the road of life & everyone we meet along the way.
I like to believe this is not the end of Davey's personal journey.

I read from Kerouac's "196th Chorus":
So I write about heaven,
Smoke for the scene,
Wanta bring everyone
Straight to the dream.
If you only could hold
what you know
As you know it forever,
instead-a
Moving from griefly to griefly,
lament to lament,
Groan, and have it come out
and smile once again,
Steady all that,
A hospital for the sick,
Lying high in crystal,
In heaven of pure
adamantine
Consanguine
Partiality devoid
Of conditions free-
Here I go rowin
Thru Lake Innisfree
Looking for Nirvana
Inside me

also from a journal entry (November 1951) as published in ROMnibus:
I hope it is true that a man can die and yet not only live in others
but give them life, and not only life but that great consciousness of life.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

& this photo, dancing with my dad: