There are so many stories… but here’s the most important one. I was already living the magical life of the Loft when I decided to apply to grad school. It was Di who persuaded me to apply to NYU. When I got in, I found that I would not be funded for my first year, which basically meant I couldn’t go. I told Di that I planned to defer for a year to save up for my tuition. “Nonsense,” she said. “If you defer, you won’t go. And you have to go.” She frog marched me down to her bank, had them draw a cashier’s cheque for the tuition, then frog marched me over to the bursar’s office to pay for the first semester.
So, I went to grad school that year on Di’s dime, even as I was living at the loft on her dime. And so I feel that all my professional success has been on her dime too. Who does that for another person that you have known for one and a half years? These were the forms of generosity– big and small– that all those who knew her also knew they could count on. Thank you, Di, you made all the difference to my life.