Juniper Valley Park

On Sunday, May 16, friends and family of Mario Colombo met at Juniper Valley Park in the heart of Middle Village, Queens to hold an informal, personal ceremony of sorts to celebrate his spirit and remember his friendship. As a person with Cooley's Anemia all his life, Mario was keenly aware of his own mortality and his wishes were to be cremated and spread under a tree in Palermo, Sicily. Since this request could not be met for his parents had him buried, his closest friends wanted to do something more to his liking to honor him and all he means to their lives. The officiant who married Jen and Dorianne a few years ago came and ran the service. We blessed a tree, wrote out cards to Mario to hang on the tree, sang songs and told stories. Jen read a beautiful euology, Dorianne read one, too and even shared excerpts from Mario's favorite books. The common theme all day was no surprise: we don't know how long we have with our loved ones; don't waste the opportunity to tell them how you feel. We all realized in death how grateful we were to have known him and how much he meant to us. We laughed and cried together. We remembered the best and worst of Mario: his intelligence, his hopeful heart, his kindness, his critical eye, his cynicism, his humor, his weaknesses. It was a day of honesty and love. On a day where Mario would be trying to 'get some color' we sat on blankets and shared our memories and our grief. It was a beautiful day for honoring a loving spirit and good friend. I only wish Mario was with us -under the trees- instead of way up high above them.