Ceremony at San Francesco (Patti, Sicily), 7th May 2017

On the 7th of May, Rapha's friends and family gather at the San Francesco Space, in Patti.

Here some testimonials from his friends :

Marco

The news of Raf's departure came to me late ...
The first reaction was that of unbelief.
I wondered if it was possible that the superheroes could die. I was convinced that no enemy could defeat them ...
... those tears remained on my face telling me that everything was true, that I would never have hugged one of the most beautiful friends you could ever wish for.
I went out on the street trying to fill that void ...
My mind has let itself be captured by disconnected thoughts, apparently trivial:
- Who knows what was the last song that raf had played ...
- Who knows what his studio was like before he went out ...
And, above all, I kept turning over what was the last memory I had of Rafael.
I tried to retrace the exact moment when we said goodbye last time ... but ... that memory escaped me ...not impressed.
Every time, however, I tried to find it out, in the place of a single exact recollection there was this explosion of images.
- There was all that energy that every summer, almost a hurricane of vitality, Rafael took us to our island.
- There was the memory of two big eyes that were wide open and they drowned you cheerfully.
- There was a smile that dissolved any anguish and gave you any joy you wanted.
- There was an old scooter that, noisily, was leading you to discover the most beautiful sunsets.
- A body that danced as if it were a tightrope walker on the precipice of life
- There was his guitar and his adventures, his stories and his music, which could transport you to all the countries of the world without needing to cross the Strait of Messina.
"No last memory", just an explosion of all that Raphael had managed to give me.

So I understood that Rafael would not have been a vacuum to fill, but rather
- a loyal presence with which to share my story silently.
- A sort of legendary figure of which one day I would like to tell the son that I have not yet had.
- An invite to live life always trying to capture its most beautiful part, just as he would have done.
- a little hero to be able to imitate and to return to in difficult moments.
- the best part that we, "sons of the dark neighborhoods of the old city", can try to express.

And so, just in that beauty that Raf was able to teach me, just in those moments when life reveals the pleasure of being lived, I know I can always find him again.
- He will be there in the moving notes of a song.
- In the happy look of all people who loved him.
- At sunset, in the last glimmer of light: the most beautiful moment before the sun leaves us to go to illuminate, with his life, another part of the world.

Thank you brother for teaching us to dance on the notes of life.

Carmelo

I searched for a word, an adjective that would describe you in the best way. Joy, exuberance, innovation, reasoning, instinct, music, art, creativity. All together they were you, but none represented you enough. Then, one word came to my mind: integration.
My thoughts and memories went to when we were kids ... to our group, to how much over time we tried to include as much as possible, to socialize as much as possible, trying to keep intact that fantastic ability of inclusion that all children do have.
In our group there was such a diversity that we all wondered what could keep us together. All of us have always given and demanded only one thing: those who come in and bind to us have to do so unconditionally… to be friends... to be one of the many strings of a single rope.
I think this is what attracted you to us, and us to you. Being so different, but so much alike .. Being in disagreement over everything, but at the same time accomplices in everything. You were a thread, but at the same time you were a rope that united our world, that of a small provincial town, to everything that's out there.
Every year, for so many years, you've brought us something new. An experience, a story, a song, an event. Cristiania, India, Bristol, the university, the band.
... words hit, penetrate inside, push you to think, to reflect on new topics ... it's the first step to unblock, and then take action.
This is one of the most important things I admired in you: using stories, arguments, to instill doubt, the idea that would have led you to reflect.
When you recently told us what Bristol was, the world you were helping to create ... we understood the importance of what you were doing, but not the meaning.
And here's the meaning of the word integration: "make sure that the individual fits in the best way within the community" ... I think you wanted to contribute to create a community that was like you, joyful, artistic, thinker, eclectic.
And then, this explains the Immigrant Swing, the PRSC, the rehabilitation of Stokes Croft ... this explains why Bristol has mobilized to pay you homage…and why so many people are here today to give you the best possible greetings.
I think you would have greatly appreciated the work and commitment lavished on by all of us, to smile rather than cry. You would have certainly loved all this.
But, I am sure, you would have scolded us for one thing: our often unexpressed potential.