YUDISTIR RUDRA PERSAUD (February 1, 1981 to October 24, 2006)

Today, I am here to make a speech for Rudra on behalf of all his friends, those of us who are here, and those who could not make it to be here.

I am always the one to give a speech when one of our friends got engaged or got married and I was so looking forward to giving a speech at Rudra's wedding but he has decided not to give me that honour.

Today, we are here to say Good Bye to our dear friend, Rudra.

We were privileged to have been a part of Rudra's life for over 8 years. By the grace of God, we met in September of 1998 when we all started UG and since then we were all inseparable. We had good times, fighting times, fun times and the times in between. One thing is certain is that through all those times he was the peacemaker, the child, the comedian, the most innocent and the most loved.

Rudra has taught us tolerance, patience, goodwill, and how to love our parents. All of our parents loved him like a son.

Rudra was a blessing from above ... for his friends, his parents, his relatives and for everyone whose lives he touched. The outpouring here today, is evidence of this.

Rudra was a part of every single moment of our lives ... our graduation, our birthdays, our dinners, our going-aways, our engagements, our weddings, our religious functions and many many other occasions.

Even after having left UG, our friendship with Rudra did not diminish. We became even closer and our friendship transitioned into long lasting bonds. We became a part of each other's work lives; we shared each other's hardships and lent support when it was most needed. He was always a good shoulder to cry on, an excellent confidant and someone we can always depend on to be there for us.

Despite knowing that he would not be there tomorrow or the days to come, we have not come to grips with what this really means for us. This has and will continue to change our lives dramatically.

This means our dearest friend will no longer be able to share our lives, our joys and sadness .... he has left us to join God Almighty. He will always have a special place in each of our hearts and no one will ever replace him. Our shared moments and our pictures are our memories of Rudra.

Goodbye is the saddest and hardest word we have to say and it breaks our hearts to have to do so. Even though he won't be here, he will live on in our hearts and we know he will be watching us from God's side.

May God give his soul eternal rest. We love you now and we always will.