Dear Anne,
Ten minutes when I received the news that you passed away, I choked. It's difficult to process. I know it was going to happen, it will happen to all of us. But I didn't realize how I would be affected. My heart is heavy, like it's about to burst every time I'm reminded of you not being with us anymore. I just hope it was fast, painless, and peaceful.
I remember you being there for me during those sleepless nights when I was younger. You'd always comfort me with your words, your worlds, and stories. You've helped me make it through that troubling phase of my life and I will be forever grateful.
"Like all strong people, she suffered always a measure of loneliness; she was a marginal outsider, a secret infidel of a certain sort." 1
I was lonely, then. I felt alone in my own home, even when I was always surrounded by people. But you would always be there, giving a safe space for me to be myself...even if I was dark, difficult, and unworthy.
"None of us really changes over time. We only become more fully what we are." 2
You paved the way to my creative self-expression - how I presented myself, my taste in music, and my strong love for "the misfits, the rebels and troublemakers". Thank you for showing that everyone is worthy of love and acceptance.
"I created it (hell) and I run it (hell) to make whole again the souls of the unjust, those who had suffered and those who had done cruelty. And the only lesson of that Hell is Love." 3
Most importantly, you bent my beliefs and shaped it into something new. You made me question everything, in a good way, and how beautifully you would convey your ideologies. And influenced me to open my mind into a world full of possibilities.
"It draws it's strength, this big secret, from the same root from which I draw my strength, both the good and the bad, because in the end, they cannot be separated." 4
How could I be so connected to you when I haven't even met you? And how were you able to help me so much when you were thousands of miles away? Your work is so powerful that way. I'm truly honored to have witnessed your brilliance. Thank you for leaving your heart with us through all your creations. I take some solace in knowing I can sit and be with you anytime, through the pages of your soul. Rest easy in sleep eternal.
Note: All quotes above are from Anne Rice's books, and they are as follows:
1 Interview with the Vampire
2 Queen of the Damned
3 Memnoch the Devil
4 The Witching Hour
