A Rare Bird

Jeff was a rare bird, a magical, energetic, and passionate individual who inspired and touched countless others as the outpouring on this blog clearly shows. I have taken some solace in the fact that he was a person who was so well loved by so many people, that in hearts stretching from El Portal to Placerville to Davis, and no doubt elsewhere, Jeff is still very much present. Not many individuals could claim to have truly captured the hearts of so many and for that I am grateful.

I have known Jeff for about nine years, meeting him originally at the domes. Immediately upon meeting him I was struck by his spark, his enthusiasm, intelligence, and easy going nature. The way a smile seemed permanently to be emblazoned on his face, and in his eyes. I always felt like he was an old friend and delighted in talking to him about his beloved birds, bees, dancing, spinnnning hunnney, and of course laughing.

Last summer, Michael and I had the opportunity to visit him in his lovely Yosemite:

I ran to keep up with his nimble and bouncing legs as we bouldered up a creek, (off-trail and without limits) flying up the trail to the falls, and around the valley before settling in, into a wet, peaceful meadow to watch his beloved falcons nesting on the cliff ledges above. “Come with me to work,” he said, and Michael and I watched with awe and fascination as he pulled out a scope and a six pack of beer, “Let’s go. Look for the white streaks on the cliff ledge… there,” he pointed. And I noted not just his savyness at spotting the nesting birds and their young, but the ease with which he made his life work so delightful in a way that few seem to truly master. “So this is what I do,” he said –among other things– his eyes crinkling into a warm and large smile.

We had trouble leaving the beautiful sierras after staying in his little cabin in El Portal, and I have often thought about going back to visit, hike, eat honey, and swim.

Though I have not lived in Davis for a few years, I always had the luck of running into Jeff around town when we were both passing through or when he was on the central valley leg of his annual migration. Like Shauna said, with Jeff, time didn’t matter and as instantly as I spotted his thick mane of curly hair he would engulf me in a huge bear hug with the warmest smile. He always felt like an old friend, and I savored catching up.

I am deeply saddened by this loss, for myself, my friends, his birds, and frogs, but especially for his family, loved ones, and partner. He was a rare and loving bird and it seems cruel to imagine the world without him. Comfort and hugs to all those in grief.

- Michelle