One day, after teaching a math lesson, one of Anthony’s students went up to his desk, pointed at a problem on the worksheet in her hand, and said, “I don’t get this, Mr. DiRocco.” Anthony said, “Well, maybe you could try looking at it from another angle.” Before he had the chance to say anything further, the little girl immediately looked down at her paper and slowly rotated the sheet about 90 degrees. She cocked her head to the side and quizzically stared at the paper for several moments before glancing back up at Anthony. She was looking at it (literally) from another angle. Aren’t kids great?
Sometimes, we need to look at complicated things from another angle...get a different perspective on the situation. There are times when our vision may be too myopic that we fail to see the entire picture. We may concentrate on one little piece, perhaps even focus all our energy in the wrong place. Other times, we may look at a particular problem or situation through such a wide lens that we completely overlook a small, but vital, piece of the puzzle. It kind of reminds me of those ‘Find the Hidden Object’ puzzles that I’d steal from my kids’ Highlights magazines. (Those puzzles were the main reason I kept the kids’ subscriptions coming...long after they grew out of reading the publication!) Sometimes, you can find things by taking in a view of the entire picture; other times, you can focus in on one small area and find that hidden piece camouflaged amid similar lines or patterns. It’s not all that different from the conundrums of real life. I wish solving the real life mysteries were as fun as the Highlights’ puzzles.
Since Anthony was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, I have had to adjust and readjust my way of looking at things from so many different angles that my head has gone spinning. To further complicate things, many of the details, parts of the picture, have changed over the course of his illness. Even one of Anthony’s doctors told me that nothing about his case has been ‘normal’ or ‘usual’ from the very beginning. So, processing all the information we’ve been given and dealing with all the changes and ups and downs, has been challenging much of the time...usually frightening...and almost always exhausting. Only one thing has remained simple, uncomplicated, and consistent from every perspective, every angle, every vantage point. That one thing is Anthony...who he is and how he loves.
Through all the tumult, in spite of the sadness, regardless of the outcome, this one constant...Anthony...has brought, and will always bring, me comfort and a sense of peace. You see, Anthony being Anthony never changes. His love for me is completely and totally unconditional. And it never wavers. I’ve never, ever...not even once...felt that he didn’t love me. For me, that’s huge...gigantic...pretty unbelievable. What’s even more amazing is that his love for me has made me (finally) feel that I...this broken, imperfect, flawed human being...am special and infinitely loved by God. You see, I can’t help but ponder this: If Anthony...a broken, imperfect, flawed human being...can love me so perfectly, how great must God’s love for me be? Only a person with a pure heart and a deep love for God can lead another to ponder such mystery. That is who Anthony is.
It has become very obvious to me that I am among many whose lives have been touched by Anthony’s love. Since he has fallen ill, hundreds of people have responded to our requests for prayer. Many have forwarded updates to others whose lives have also been touched by Anthony in some way. Childhood friends and former classmates, some of whom Anthony has not seen or heard from in years, have written or called to tell us they are praying. I have never seen anything like this. But, then again, I have never known anyone like Anthony.
I received an email the other day...a poem written by an old friend whom Anthony has not seen in decades. The poem was sent to others as an urgent request for prayers after learning of Anthony’s recent hospitalization for dehydration and acute kidney failure. I wept as I read this poem. I wept, not only over the beauty of the words...I wept because I was overwhelmed by the beauty of the man to whom I am married. I wept because this man I call ‘husband’ has grown over the years, but he hasn’t changed. His deep love for God has always spilled out and touched the lives of those who have been blessed with his friendship.
No matter how complicated things get, no matter how this illness threatens to change our lives, I can be sure of one thing...Anthony will always be Anthony. He will always love unconditionally, with a pure and beautiful heart.
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| Anthony J. DiRocco, Jr. He has grown, but he hasn't changed. |
Here is the poem I received from Anthony's dear friend, Gil Garcia. Thank you, Gil, for showing us Anthony through your eyes.
An urgent request for prayer for Anthony DiRocco (February 28th, 2012)
A dear friend, Anthony DiRocco, lies fighting for his life in my beloved San Pedro.
I ask all who know him, and those who do not,
to reminisce of a morning you might have spent listening to the surf at sunrise.
He is that!
He was created by God to bring joy to your soul, and freshness to your very existence,
like the sounds of shore delivering the songs of nature from the creator.
He is that.
Much like the morning shoreline mist cleansing your senses
in blissful strolls along the water’s edge.
Similarly, Anthony’s music and songs throughout his life
have allowed one to find joy in the vibrations of his strings
and the beauty of his voice,
a gift he’s given freely throughout his life.
He is the man, the person, the Jongleur of life
who strolled into your troubled existence with music and rhyme;
He is that.
His contributions to one’s everyday life go beyond his music,
for his friendship is treasured by all who chanced to know him.
He is a gift to all life; He is selfless.
He is that and more.
I implore all who have known him, and those who have not,
and to those who have forgotten how to pray,
to pray this day for the healing of this soldier of joy.
Please, if you have ever loved another human being, male or female,
before you lay your head down tonight
let your higher power hear in a massive common cause
a request from mankind to heal our Jongleur of song.
Please, I beg you because he is all that I say;
He is that and more.
Please hurry to send this on to your friends
and ask them to send it on to theirs from country to country today.
Do not wait!
~ GIL GARCIA
Check out Gil's artwork at
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