Nilufer Ozsoy (Nif)

It all began with the black vinyl disc rendered into pun-sized fragments for our appreciation alone, followed by marsupial-spotting in the Fitzroy Gardens, a turning-again sunflower resilience, then something about golf courses, a simmering country church recital, Wordsworthian nods to daffodils, a cheer each time round St. Bernard’s oval, the last blue note squeezed out and ground underfoot as carpet ash, a fruitbat-like topsy-turviness, the difference between crows and magpies, an angst not yet outgrown, thieves of beauty, a 1971 green LC Holden careering into dry riverbeds, gesticulating exuberance, waiting on Godot.

“Two aphorisms to take away Charlie, thanks mate!”, extemporaneously conducting an invisible orchestra, Segovia on my heartstrings and Paganini on yours, the poseurs and the dilettantes in between, but always, always this hunger for the what and the when. An intensity which hadn’t diminished over the years, an earnestness of expression shared.

​Nif chose the following from Guy's Lockdown diary to read out at the memorial:

On the back of living bodies of creatures... I am really interested in RHYTHM... after all it's the first thing we hear… a heartbeat of our incubators… mothers… then before we speak RHYTHM is such a key to learning.. and healthy progress in developing the body & soul, a rhythmic converse essential in mindgrowth… it does lift enjoyment in life.

Like the early Spanish tapas bars in Fitzroy we once enjoyed... it helps me when in extreme pain or discomfort... just another semi-philosophical discussion... Melbourne very quiet... people are really showing their inner souls… sadly there are a lot of tortured souls out there as limited as my travels are...