A Sad Night In The City...

I've just gotten home, after a long emotional evening at the memorial for my long time friend, Noga Zuniga. My head hurts from supressing the tears I didn't shed, and my heart hurts, because I miss him already. I kept expecting him to walk through the doors of the rec center banquet hall, joining the rest of his friends, saying "Hey Guys, What's up?" However, I knew, sadly; that would not be the case.

It stands to mention, that there were approximately 100-150 people (I'm just hazarding a rough guess at the attendance.) at this sad and at the same time, joyous gathering, celebrating the life of a good friend. This proves the point that Noga was a decent, sweet person, who garnered the friendship and admiration of people who knew him, through his gentle demeanor and humble personality. He truly was a spectacular human being, even with the flaws, that everyone has.

His father gave the speech at the beginning of the memorial, and his description of his son was sweet, tinged with tremendous sadness. He brought to light a side of my friend that not a lot of people saw, and he also brought up his son's deep spiritual side. This was no shock to me, knowing his upbringing as a Jehovah's Witness; even though he had separated himself from the religious group about 5-7 years previously.

I'll wholeheartedly admit, I cried. Quite a few times. I think it hit me hard walking in those doors at the rec centre, recieving a memorial photograph, which showed him at his best, smiling, on the beach, holding a shell of some sort. (It's a spectacular photograph, that I'm going to scan and put in this entry within the next few days.) I started crying before I even entered the doors of the banquet hall, and I was glad I had the foresight to stuff my pockets full of tissue.

I was mildly surprised seeing this line up of people that were so different in outward appearance, from the "Club Kid" style hairdo's, to the people in semi-formal attire, looking as if they stepped out of the office and into the Rec Centre.

I saw people I haven't seen since I graduated Highschool, and if it were under different circumstances, it would have been one helluva party. Noga had mentioned to a few close friends, that he wanted the people attending his funeral, (if it ever occurred) to wear jeans and have skateboards on hand. Some people respected that request, which makes me smile to know he had friends that loved him so much.

There's a wake being held at his "second home" Myles of Beans, a coffee shop where he played chess, (which was one of his passions) and socialized with his many friends, located on Kingsway and the side street between Salisbury Street and Griffiths Street in Burnaby, on Thursday night, for anyone that missed his memorial.

I hope, in the deepest recesses of my heart, that he found the answers to the questions that he was always wondering about.

I hope that he found peace, because even though he was a wonderfully positive person, often encouraging those who had lost heart in themselves, he often had insecurities about himself.

I hope he's finally happy now that he's not stuck in this turbulent world.