Poems

Rabi
by Barbara

Search the stars,
Search the skies,
But the magic you seek
Is in a wind child's eyes.

The wind child seeks
The chilled whoosh down slope,
The breathless rush on 2-wheels;
The glimpse of a glider float.

Movement and air
Were the wind child's core.
Running and racing,
Feet rarely touching the floor.

Blessed were you to share the magical moments.
His spirit brushes past your ear,
For the wind child never wanders far.
He's riding the breeze by you, from beyond the brightest star.

Shooting Star
by Sharon

Lives are arcs,
some traced more quickly than others,
but no less complete
and
symmetric.

Rabi on his silver mountain bike at the big gold tree
on the hill,
poised for take-off,
then careening down
fast as gravity and pumping pedals could take him,
taut muscles like springs absorbing every bump,
spinning careless determination and glee.
Gaining momentum, he
zoomed across Ellsworth
and streaked up the Haynes' front yard,
angling between the shrubs to
light on their little knoll and pause,
grinning.

His course flawless anbd triumphant,
etched more brightly
because it was slightly forbidden.
He wasn't supposed to be in those bushes.

Rabi's arc,
simply perfect,
if steeper and swifter than most.

A poem by Amy

Although Rabi's gone,
It's sad he passed away,
But memories are with us,
And dreams will always stay,
We think of him at night,
And during sunny days,
Rabi is not with us,
He can't enjoy our ways,
But he's up there in heaven,
Looking down on all of us,
As we go in his room,
And look throught all his stuff,
The drops of tears run down our cheeks,
It saddens us to say,
It will come many weeks,
And we will dearly pay,
Many of us loved him,
With all our heart and soul,
Rabi is not with us,
Many tears will roll.
Happy things about him,
Will forever be with us.
He had a funny smile,
That often made us cuss,
Cause when you were around him,
He's pass it on to you,
Without complaint or worry,
He would love you too.
Amy

Laughing my heart out...
Rami, Tunis

...Rabi was a great friend and one of the most thoughtful and sensitive people I knew. I remember how he used to tip toe from his room to the kitchen because as he said, "The floor is too cold." I treasured his friendship not because he was there with me all the time, but because he was also one of my idols. My jaw would drop to the floor when I saw him do one of his flips. He acted as though it was nothing, but also made sure that I tried also. When he left for the states our friendship only became stronger and from that moment on we shared some sort of bond that was unexplainable. He could always make me laugh, he just had to open his mouth and comment about an object and I would be on the floor laughing my heart out....

Rabi I miss you!!!!!!
From Molly

...I will always remember when we went to adventure world and we were about to get on the white rollercoaster and that weird dude came up to us and started talking to you and you acted as if everything was normal and you knew him. And then I asked you who he was and you didn't even know him but you had been so nice to him. And then I remember when I first talked to you, it was at Trisha's cousin's party and I think it was Carly who had just had her batmitsva and I asked you for the little glowing thing that you had gotten there and without even really knowing me you gave it to me. Oh, you were such a sweetie and then also at Christmas in 8th grade you gave me and Mai a kiss. Rabi I miss you so much!! And in NY I got the cutest picture of you and Sean. I remember you didn't want your picture taken but I got you by surprise. I put that picture up on my wall I'd like you to know. I will always love and remember you and I will always have my memories of you to cherish.

Love, Molly

His Smile
from Lauren

...We led a procession of at least 100 of his fellow blazers and family to where it had happened. Many people laid down flowers or some other item that was close to them in a pile, and there were signs and flowers against a nearby wall. I put down my bracelet at the end of the memorial, I wanted to leave something of mine near him. ...I couldn't believe that the coffin contained the body of a person that I talked to everyday. He still owed me money for that matter. After the funeral, most people went back to his house to be with the family. We went up to his room, and saw just how he had left it. I couldn't believe that the toys and the books and clothes lying around had been touched by him only four days earlier, and that they would never be touched by the same person again. After we went up to his room, almost everyone went back to the memorial. I was happy that the flowers and momentos were still there, for if they werren't, I would have been extremely sad. ...The only thing I can think about this, is his smile. His smile will never stop as long as I think of him. The smile is what surprised me the most. The one thing I could remember out of such a tragedy, was a smile.

As if he were our own child...
from Richard and Eglal

...We will never forget the good friend that Rabi was for Jean-Peirre. The little boy who did not seem to be afraid of anything always provided encouragement for Jean-Pierre to try out something new and different. For Maire-Helene and Paul Noel, Rabi was someone they looked up to and respected. Paul Noel, the impressionable toddler, was especially in awe of him.
We were also in love with Rabi. How could we not be? He was constantly on the go, his boundless energy fueled by frequent trips to the kitchen. We shared his joys at Cub Scouts and at the American School, and we were saddened by his disappointments, as if he were our own child...

Teddy Bear Boy
by Constance

Your smile brightens up my day. Your presence was the best. We miss you. We love you...Please tell God to send somebody to push me and make sure you tell God to make him look like you.
Rabi I have nobody to push me off the line so they could get their French paper signed. I have nobody to call "Snuggle Teddy", or "Teddy Bear Boy"...Watch over us Rabi...
Constance