9/11, David and Andrew Rice and Me... Stories From Nowhere Podcast

Andrew Rice and I share an uncommon bond and burden. His brother David was one of my best friends who was senselessly murdered on 9/11 along with thousands of others. Although the years pass, in many ways, the enormity of David's loss magnifies. It is truly a wound which does not heal.

Armed with a Master's Degree from Harvard Divinity School, Andrew Rice is an accomplished author and poet - a veritable renaissance man. Recently, Andrew started a podcast - storiesfromnowherepodcast.com - with an eclectic and fascinating mix of guests, including the founders of Die Jim Crow Records (DJCR), a label which helps artists incarcerated behind bars, Great Britain based clinical psychologist Sandra Barefoot, Programme Development Lead for The Forgiveness Project, and Church Goin' Mule, a Cleveland, Mississippi based artist influenced by the outsider art of Howard Finster and Bill Traylor. and the delta blues of Robert Johnson, Howlin Wolf and Blind Willie McTell.

Several months ago, Andrew called me and asked if I would contribute to his podcast and speak about his brother. I was deeply touched and gladly accepted. Andrew said, "We'll just have a conversation and see where it goes."  There were no notes, no preparation and no guardrails. It was just two brothers united in their recovery and grief trying to make sense of the senseless. There were tears and laughter as we talked, remembering the indomitable spirit and force of energy that was our brother David Rice, his by blood, mine by choice. For me, It was a glorious afternoon, recalling the profound and profane, in short, the human condition which infuses and informs all of our lives.

As stated on its website, the purpose of Stories from Nowhere "documents unconventional conversations, details human connections, presents the questions and mysteries we all face, from anywhere, out in nowhere, and everywhere…" I am so humbled and honored to be included. Thank you Andrew for the opportunity. While I mostly bend and stumble toward the light, in words and deeds, you live an exemplary life of love and service. David would be so proud.

Feel free to share and disseminate wildly, these stories that Andrew has curated deserve a far wider audience.

Hope our paths cross soon.

Neil