{"id":32417,"date":"2022-10-12T13:02:41","date_gmt":"2022-10-12T11:02:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ilgrandecolibri.com\/ciao-maurizio-ti-ricorderemo-per-sempre\/"},"modified":"2022-11-17T12:24:18","modified_gmt":"2022-11-17T11:24:18","slug":"farewell-maurizio","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ilgrandecolibri.com\/en\/farewell-maurizio\/","title":{"rendered":"Farewell Maurizio, we will always remember you"},"content":{"rendered":"

Here at the\u00a0Nido del Colibr\u00ec<\/em> we help many people who have a relationship with death that the average Italian and the people who live in the \u201cluckier\u201d part of the world do not have. They come from countries where death is a part of everyday life and almost all of them have made a horrendous journey to get here, where they saw their companions die and they themselves risked their own lives. These very people have a hard time expressing their feelings.<\/p>\n

That is why the most striking thing during the funeral service of our volunteer\u00a0Maurizio Rivioli <\/strong>was to see them, who fled African countries, crying the whole time, sometimes doubled over by grief, because \u2013 even if one can get used to the death \u2013 grieve for a loved one is something else. For some of them Maurizio was a friend, for others he was a source of joy in difficult times, and for someone other he was like a brother.<\/p>\n

For example, James was welcomed into Maurizio\u2019s home for a year when the pandemic gave him no other option, regardless of his vulnerability, but that to live on the streets during one of the harshest times of recent human history. Maurizio\u2019s father had passed away just a few weeks earlier, but both him and his mother decided to take care of this person who escaped from Nigeria, who had nothing, and they asked nothing in return. James began learning Italian and, slowly, had the chance and time to rebuilt his life.<\/p>\n

If people should be judged by facts and not by words, this would be enough to explain how kind of a person Maurizio was. But Maurizio was more than that. Sometimes we think that to do big things and help others, we need great resources and possibilities. Yet, he was the living proof that most of the time this is nothing but an excuse. He worked as proof-reader for technical manuals who self-improved his English. He was passionate about horror films and videogames, he was hated fish (and everything that came from the sea), and he cherished a circle of friends he had built over the years. He was a perfectionist; he wanted to make a good impression and do things right. In the end, he was an average person. One day, though, he decided he was tired of passively suffering in an environment, Piacenza, that wasn’t very welcoming for people like him (indeed, he made his first group of gay friends in Bologna).<\/p>\n

Maurizio was gay, and life in a small, provincial town is not that easy for people like him, who don\u2019t pretend to be someone they\u2019re not. Sometimes he recalled all the pain he experienced from being excluded and bullied. Until the day he realized it would be better to do something about it, instead of complaining and be angry.<\/p>\n

When I approached Arcigay of Piacenza<\/em>, in 2005, he was already a member\u2026 And when \u2013 a few years later \u2013 the association fell apart, we were the only two who tried to keep it going. In the beginning it was really difficult and without him it would have been impossible. But he believed in it, he was always there, and more and more as activities increased. He wanted, in a small way, to do everything in his power to change things and make the world a better place. He was always polite, kind, and determined.<\/p>\n

I think, regardless of his activism, his greater contribution to the LGBT+ community was being a testimonial for the cause, without even knowing it: he was the living proof that gay people can be kind, well-mannered, respectful, and can be loved for who they are. In fact, everyone appreciated his attitude, and the ability he had to be loved while remaining himself.<\/p>\n

Then, when I left\u00a0Arcigay<\/em>, I asked him to follow me in this idea of the\u00a0Nido del Colibr\u00ec<\/strong>, in 2017. At the beginning, in all honesty, he was not that persuaded, and also was disillusioned by the voluntary sector in general, but he gave it a go and, like he always said, after a while a world of new possibilities opened up. He got to know the people and their stories, he became their friend and listened to their experiences; he began to see the world and life from a new perspective. I remember that when we first started to collect the stories of people who needed help with the asylum application, he told me that back at home he often cried his eyes out home because he didn’t expect what we did could be so important for them. In the end, with this experience, we grew up together and we have helped more and more people, having to deal with increasingly complicated situations. But he was always there, and when cash ran low, he put his own money because, he said, \u201cI don’t won\u2019t be taking my money to the grave<\/em>\u201d.<\/p>\n

No, he didn\u2019t take the money to his grave, but he took our flag, and the affection of the people who loved him and who will miss him. During the service many people, straight and gay alike, out of their own will, with no previous agreement, wore something rainbow or the \u201cWHY NOT?<\/em>\u201d T-shirt, that he used to wear at events and rallies.<\/p>\n

This is the best way to remember him, for sure. I like to think he\u2019s already had a chat with Michael Jackson, who he was a huge fan of.<\/p>\n

After his death by pulmonary embolism, he got attacked by anti-vaxxers and homophobes. In this regard, besides the distaste, Oscar Wilde\u2019s quote is the only suitable remark: \u201cNever argue with an idiot, he drags you to his level and beats you with experience<\/em>\u201d. Maurizio liked facts, not words, and there should be more people like him, he should be an example and an inspiration for many\u2026 Or at least for those who really want to make their share to change the world, like he did.<\/p>\n

It was a pleasure knowing and sharing a piece of the way with him. That\u2019s a shame he passed away so early, but his presence in this world was a great fortune.<\/p>\n

Farewell Maurizio, we will always remember you.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Ciao<\/p>\n

Valeriano Scassa<\/strong> (Wally)
\ntranslation by Sonia
\n\u00a92021 Il Grande Colibr\u00ec<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Here at the\u00a0Nido del Colibr\u00ec we help many people who have a relationship with death that the average Italian and the people who live in the \u201cluckier\u201d part of the…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":43,"featured_media":32238,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7859,7855],"tags":[7856,7857],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ilgrandecolibri.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32417"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ilgrandecolibri.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ilgrandecolibri.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ilgrandecolibri.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/43"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ilgrandecolibri.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=32417"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.ilgrandecolibri.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32417\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":32462,"href":"https:\/\/www.ilgrandecolibri.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32417\/revisions\/32462"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ilgrandecolibri.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/32238"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ilgrandecolibri.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=32417"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ilgrandecolibri.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=32417"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ilgrandecolibri.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=32417"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}