TO THE DEAREST FRIENDS

           

"Beneath the tower of the Westerkerk,
where time itself grows gentle,
I long to cherish with thee all the moments our lives have yet to dream."

(John Keats, 1795)

              Amsterdam, 23 November 2024

My Dear Ffriends,

It is a rare privilege to be able to boast of unique friendships like the one that binds me to many of you here today. There are so many of you, from every part of this world. We pursue different professions, and yet there is something wonderful and unique, a common denominator that transcends mere residence in this city, Amsterdam, and which, for the most diverse reasons, has brought us together.

It is impossible to find the words to describe the gratitude I feel for the fortune of having met the extraordinary people that you are.

I arrived in Amsterdam in March 2020, at a historical moment for humanity in which the insecurity about the future that Covid brought, simultaneously meant that many of us came together in this moment of uncertainty.

Westermarkt was, I believe many of you recognize this, a point of union for many of the people present here, an open house, a place of sharing, of discussion, a small intellectual living room, which in those moments of uncertainty about the future, Soumya and I had created. A place that was the cradle for interactions, friendships, and the solid relationships we have built over these years, and which we continued to build later within the walls of this beautiful attic overlooking the Singel.

Almost five years have passed since that March 2020 when I arrived in my pajamas in a rented Opel Zafira in a rush at Luxembourg airport, with my whole life inside. 5 years during which I have grown and become the person you now see before you, also thanks to the intimate, shared moments we spent together.

I want to say it again, it is impossible to express the gratitude I feel towards the fate that has brought us here, today, all together, to remind us once again of our extraordinary uniqueness. Thank you to all present and also to those who could not be here but would have wanted to, and yes, why not, also to those who would not have wanted to.

We have grown together over these years, we have supported each other, helped each other, cared for each other, loved each other, beyond the boundaries of conventional friendly definitions. With many of you, I have shared extraordinary moments, of unique, genuine, authentic, even intimate and romantic humanity. And I want to say thank you to you. Thank you for being the extraordinary people that you are. The complex people that we are. Rational beings, with our bourgeois ambitions, and our artistic dreams, but never losing the tenderness that distinguishes us.

Thank you for being people of a thousand facets, beyond conventions, beyond definitions, thank you for being so extraordinarily unique and aware of the beauty you can bring, with your talents you illuminate and bring hope to this complicated world.

Thank you for the wonderful moments spent together, I will cherish them forever in my heart and they will be the strength to keep improving myself always.

For me, the Amsterdam chapter after almost 5 years is coming to an end.

And now I would like to spend a few words for some of you:

I would like to begin with the friends from Leiden.

Lexo, you are a rare friend, your brilliance and devotion to knowledge and individual freedom will ensure you are remembered for your writings. I esteem you as an intellectual and as a friend. Everything I would want to tell you today, I told you a few months ago on the occasion of the celebration of your doctorate in Leiden and everything I said there is tacitly renewed here: do not change, pursue, stubbornly, against the current: in a contrary and obstinate direction, because that is the way of people destined to change the world. I am proud to know that I will have a friend at Harvard next year. I owe you a trip to Georgia. It will happen, I promise you. Ad maiora semper, brother.

Gulhiz, you are an extraordinary person and you don't know how grateful I am for our friendship. Today I see you with Alex and you don't know how happy I am to see this beautiful and true love of yours. Cultivate yourselves, you will go far.

Jose, Vicky, you are perhaps the most mature couple among my friends. Thank you for always being present in important moments, for being there when there was a need. I miss the carefree moments together singing during the long summers, the chirping of crickets and the sizzling barbecue. I wish you all the best, you are a family to be inspired by, we can't wait to meet the new little one. Let's not forget who we are.

Anne, I care for you and I wish you all the best. You were a faithful companion for me and Soumya during the Covid times. May the light of ambition and curiosity never cease to stir within you.

Matilde, it fills me with joy to see you here today. We have known each other for over 7 years, during which we shared unique moments of joy in Leiden and Amsterdam and a holiday in Sardinia that I still count among the most beautiful moments of my life. As unfortunately happens in life, we had our misunderstandings in the past, and unfortunately for a long time we did not see each other, you have traveled so much in recent years, but I am proud to learn about and see your fantastic journey of professional and human growth. My wish is that we can keep in touch and that the friendship that once bound us may echo more strongly in the future.

Seif, it is impossible to describe what I feel for you. You are like a brother to me. You are one of the most intelligent people I have had the honor of knowing. Not only have you always been there in the most difficult moments, but also in the most beautiful ones. You are a persistent source of inspiration and we share a genuine, insatiable curiosity. You are an extraordinary person, your past and your history are a constant source of inspiration for others. You are an endless well of resources and you are destined to do great things. Never stop dreaming and pursuing your ambitions and your dreams of adventure, wherever they must take you, be it to Taiwan or beyond.

I love you, and I will care for you forever and I promise you that next year, wherever you are, I will find the time and the way to spend some time together. One final recommendation, never stop writing to keep your volcanic personality organized and maintain a clear record of your stories.

Raidan, for you too it is difficult to describe in words what binds us. The true and genuine friendship that binds us will remain forever wherever we go. The intellectual affinity and mutual respect that binds us together with our hedonistic vortex of desire for sociability and genuine desire to always rediscover ourselves and pursue true friendships, detached from petty bourgeois conveniences, makes us the intellectually free and extraordinary people that we are and that unites many of the people present here today. Mariya, I care for you deeply, take care of yourselves, and cultivate your love and mutual care for the years to come. We will not lose sight of each other, do not fear. First of all, a trip to Sardinia awaits us next year, I promise you.

Camilo, I adore the possibility of being able to speak with you in Spanish and our spontaneous way of understanding each other. You are a dear friend, do not change, remain faithful to the line, to your genuine curiosity and to your ambition. You are a self-made man like many of us, pursue your dreams and never stop aspiring and improving yourself. I promised you and a dear friend in Bogotá that I would return to Colombia. The moment will come, I promise you.

Merel, we have had wonderful moments of discussion. You are a wonderful soul. I could not think of a more beautiful couple. May you and Camilo always maintain your beautiful relational balance, overcome difficult moments together, improving as a couple, loving and respecting each other, and in parallel cultivating your wonderful individualities.

Johan, Baek, you are an added value for this group of friends and you have brought a beautiful Korean component that has led us to meet many people, including our beloved Japanese Aki who unfortunately today could not honor us with her presence.
I would have liked to spend more time with you, but I am grateful for the time spent together during these years nonetheless. You are dear friends and good and kind people. I dream of being able to share my trip to Korea with you next year.

Mark, today is also your birthday and I am grateful that you came despite the domestic accident that forced you to bed for these weeks and still forces you to rest. I am honored by your presence which truly means a lot in the gesture.
May you celebrate with these wonderful people who are the friends we share a beautiful birthday when you have finished rehabilitation.

You are a source of inspiration, few know what you had to go through to be here and be what you have become. We have been emotional together. I will never forget that day spent at the airport returning from the weekend in Zeeland last year. You are a pure, benevolent soul, of unique generosity and empathy. A light in this world of intolerance and denied rights. And also or, perhaps, especially for this reason, today we can all look to you and Yassine as a couple of great inspiration. Cultivate your love, you are unique and adorable. I really love you.
I promise you that as soon as I can I will confirm my presence for the trip to Egypt together.

Vlad, similarly to what I said for Mark, with whom you share perhaps the strongest friendship, you are a source of inspiration, you are a fighter, with great ambitions but you maintain this purity that distinguishes you, that distinguishes many of us who have fought to be where we are. When I see you and Frane I almost get emotional, you are a wonderful couple, may you too cultivate your love and happiness together for the years to come.

Urban, you are one of the people here with whom I have shared extraordinary intimate moments. The friendship that binds us, our understanding each other immediately, the artistic affinity and the feeling of brotherhood we have developed make our friendship unique. I care for you beyond traditional friendships. There is an incredible spontaneous harmony between us, I could never tire of spending time together. Take care of yourself and never stop dreaming, and trust me, despite the distance, we will continue to dream together, our friendship and our artistic inspirations will continue beyond geographical limits.

Katja, we both know how much we care for each other and how deep what binds us is. You are a wonderful person, and with Urban you create an extraordinary couple. Your generosity is second only to your resourcefulness and foresight. You are the integral glue of what has become this group. You too continue to love and respect each other while cultivating your extraordinary individualities. I will miss you terribly. Good luck with your research project, I am sure it will be a success and only the beginning of a brilliant career. Truly.

Tom, we have repeated it to each other several times and lastly just two days ago. You are one of the people I will miss the most. I could never tire of talking with you. There is something intimate and authentic that we share, that leads us to endless nights of chats and conversations, in which we have dug deep within ourselves. Good luck with everything that awaits you. I will care for you forever. When I return to Amsterdam, you will be among the first to know.

Andrea, the intellectual affinity and the professional path that binds us is known only to us.
It is not easy to develop strong friendships within the confines of a cohabitation, and yet, I leave Amsterdam grateful and honored to have shared this space and this year together. You are one of the most intelligent and at the same time most humble people I know. I wholeheartedly hope that we can continue to cultivate our friendship beyond the walls of this house. May our friendship grow in the years to come. Great things await you, my extraordinary friend. I care for you. Truly.

Simon, for a long time we were the only singles in our group and I will never forget our trip to Manchester. Your unique irony and liveliness have accompanied many of the days spent together. You are a faithful and true friend and the passion for cinema unites us, I care for you, for us too it will not end here and I hope we will see each other again soon on the next trip.

Najla, we have known each other for just over a year, but beyond the coincidence of having so many friends in common, we liked and understood each other from the start. I wish you all the best. You are a pure and extraordinary person, a trusted friend of unique generosity. Let's not lose touch, I ask you. I promise to guide you to B2 level in Italian, if you wish.

Matteo, in this room you are the person I have known for the longest time. You were the dearest friend I had in Luxembourg, the stop that preceded my move here. We have known each other for years and we never tire of our time together. When you moved to Amsterdam, we roughly believed that for a while we would be bachelor companions together. And instead, against all odds, Rihanne came along, who, with her unique sweetness, immediately stole your heart. You are a beautiful couple. Cultivate your love every day.

Maxime, among those present you are the only friend who has also been a colleague. I have cared for you and I still care for you so, so much. You are a person of extraordinary talent, good, humble and genuine. You too, like many here, are a self-made woman and you have worked hard to be the extraordinary, independent and resolute woman you are today. I wish you all the best from this life because you deserve it all. Thank you for everything you have taught me. Professionally speaking, we have achieved milestones together that rarely anyone, at our age, can boast of. Grateful to have shared your extraordinariness.

Viktor, we have known each other for a short time, but we have shared intense moments and supported each other in the extremely difficult moments we had to face this year. We know that we will always be there for each other. I care for you boundlessly. In this moment of transition that we are both experiencing, we know that we can count on each other.

Daniel, Daniel, with you it was love at first sight.

Our shared passion for cinema united us instantly.

I will never forget that night, when, immersed in our conversations, sitting on two chairs in the garden of a house vibrating with party, we spent hours and hours exchanging emotions about the films that had most inspired us and that we had most loved.
We have known each other for just over a year, but from the beginning we got along and developed a deep bond. We both know—and we have told each other—that distance will not diminish our shared dream of creating something truly unique together.

I believe it, and I hope you believe it too—that one day we will write that film.

You are an incredible artist: you taught me that to be a great artist one must above all be diligent in organizing time and strive to write and produce even when one is less inspired. A teaching that you, who are an inexhaustible source of inspiration and creativity, master with great consistency.

I sincerely hope that we can continue, together with you and Urban, to be mutual sources of inspiration and creativity. I admit it: I am jealous (just kidding!) of the extraordinary artistic connection that you and Urban have built. You two will go far, both individually and together—believe it, and believe in it because you have a unique talent. I believe in you, and I am sure many others do too.

I care about you very much. You even managed to make me question my heterosexuality. I care for you beyond everything.

Nas, in this room you are the person I have known the longest, since I was 15 if I remember correctly, and you are the person who introduced me to many of those present here in 2021. Our friendship, like our way of communicating and understanding each other immediately, is symptomatic of the peculiarity and uniqueness of our friendship. Even though this year we also had to overcome our difficult moments, our friendship proved to be deep and true and helped us when we needed it most. You have always been there for me, from the beginning, and you supported me during the difficult period with Lucy and I will never forget that. We will continue to cultivate our friendship and live it together for the years to come. I care for you beyond everything. Forever. My brother.

Caitlin, the best non-native Italian speaker I know. You are a person of unique goodness and spontaneity. This year, for you, as for me, there have been difficult moments, but you are a fighter and a woman endowed with brilliant intelligence and tenacity. Against all adversity, it is not rare to find in you words of comfort, authentic moments of discussion, genuine instants of true friendship, which only the most tender souls, like ours, know how to appreciate. Forgive me if perhaps I have been less present than I should have been recently. However, we know that we can always count on each other and that whatever happens we will always be there for each other in times of difficulty.
You have been a constant for years in this wonderful group, I will never stop admiring you and caring for you. I wish you and Nas to continue to cultivate your love and always improve yourselves. I can't wait to hug you again in Vicenza at Christmas.

Jeb, Lucia, I have repeated this for many people here but, especially this year, something clicked between us and we got to know each other even more deeply than we already did. You better than anyone else know how difficult this year has been for me. The endless waiting, the postponements, the constant uncertainty, an infinite limbo made of silences and delays which today, to my extreme relief, finally comes to an end.

Jeb, few know your unique story that starts from Yemen, passes through Djibouti, the United States, Canada to then land in our beloved Vicenza and where due to some planetary alignment you were able to meet Lucia. For me you are a source of inspiration, we know it but I renew the promise: our friendship is one of those destined to remain for a lifetime and I promise you that I will always be there and will remain by your side even beyond geographical distances. I dream together of finally being able to go to Yemen, to listen to your stories and share with you the moments when the memories of your youth among the sand dunes of the desert, and the peaks of the mountains surrounding Sana'a will resurface.

Lucia, you are the person who, more than anyone else in this room, has been by my side during this year. We have been emotional, moved, we have argued, we have cried, we have listened to each other, we have supported each other and I will learn to appreciate this our unique connection and this deep love that binds us more and more, because they are of the kind that in life one can only dream of having. I am honored by the fortune of counting you among the most faithful friends. You too, like me, and many others, are going through a phase of transition in your life and important choices lie ahead of you. Know that I will always be there to listen to you, advise you and guide you in the decisions that await you. Thank you for everything. I will never forget all that you have done for me.

Nas, Caitlin, Jeb, Lucia, I can't wait to hug you again in Vicenza to celebrate Christmas together. The 5 of us are a unique entity here because we are united not only by Vicenza, but by the friendship that binds us.

I will no longer be here with you, but promise me that you 4 will always remain faithful friends and will remain close because you will need it. I dream of a holiday together next year.

Thank you for your patience and for all your love. I love you, truly.

Sou, you are the reason I am here today.

Only we know the sacrifices we made to cultivate the love that bound us for almost five years. I owe so much of what I am today to you, and I will never tire of repeating to us, together, mutually, how grateful and proud we must be to be here together today and to remember how extraordinary and true our love was and how extraordinary and true the friendship that still binds us today is. I will never forget your dreamy gaze when we woke up in your room, with an enchanted Leiden covered in snow outside the window, whose flakes you saw falling from the sky for the first time. The tenderness that we share has been the driving force of what we were and what we will be.

You are a luminary and a source of inspiration for all those around you. Your story that starts from the Orisha and lands in Amsterdam is made of battles and sacrifices, which only a tenacious woman endowed with superb intellect can narrate. When you told me that you would be participating in a conference in Cambridge I could not believe the honor of being able to boast about it around.

I can never stop being grateful for the years of true love that bound us and made us the people we are today. I love you and I will love you forever. I hope you can find the way to continue to be a source of inspiration and the way to fight for what we truly believe in and pursue beyond ourselves, which is the thing that unites us the most, to put others before ourselves and sacrifice to make the world a better place.

I loved you for this too and others will love you and draw inspiration from you, for this your genuine being fearless, resolute, true, beyond all prejudice, beyond all compromise, with great courage, but also with that zen calm and your wonderful smile of a woman who has seen so many that there is no obstacle that can discourage you.

Never stop fighting and believing in your ideals, wherever they may take you. Find the time to reflect and plan the next move, and if this choice should bring you back to India, a country that needs now, more than ever in its history, courageous people, but above all enlightened women to lead its ruling class, embrace it and pursue it with your whole self.

Thank you for everything you have been for me, for us, you are an extraordinary being and I will always carry you in my heart. Thank you.