This news has me feeling sick in the pit of my stomach. A gentle soul has passed.
So inspiring to hear how much Pierre had accomplished even with so much personal adversity to contend with. And that he could keep in good spirits, and even see to other's needs when his own body was so broken.
I too took notice when ever Pierre liked one of my posts. Since I sometimes feel misunderstood, his support really helped counter that feeling.
My sincere condolences to all here, especially to those who knew him personally. How fortunate you all were and are!
I thought I'd share one of my favorite engravings by Gustave Doré illustrating Dante's Divine Comedy, specifically Paradiso, Canto XXXI. Actually, here is the canto itself. It somehow reminds me of the last post Pierre did with that resplendent kingfisher emerging victorious from the depths.
[Description from an article on Open Culture, "Gustave Doré's Haunting Illustrations of Dante's
Divine Comedy"]
In the Empyrean, the highest heaven, Dante is shown the dwelling place of God. It appears in the form of an enormous rose, the petals of which house the souls of the faithful. Around the center, angels fly like bees carrying the nectar of divine love.
So, in the shape of that white Rose, the holy
legion has shown to me — the host that Christ,
with His own blood, had taken as His bride.
The other host, which, flying, sees and sings
the glory of the One who draws its love,
and that goodness which granted it such glory,
just like a swarm of bees that, at one moment,
enters the flowers and, at another, turns
back to that labor which yields such sweet savor,
descended into that vast flower graced
with many petals, then again rose up
to the eternal dwelling of its love.