For my brother Pit Passarell ,
You left, and I came here preparing to say goodbye, to honor you, and to tell you how important you were in my life. In truth, I really wanted to write a beautiful song for you, one of those that only you could compose. It would be wonderful to be able to praise you with a song worthy of you, but God didn't give me your talent, your genius.
I confess I don't even remember when I met you. I remember some flashes, like us watching the 1978 World Cup on the ground floor of our building on Veiga Filho Avenue. Maybe I was intrigued to see an Argentinian celebrating, but I'm not sure about that anymore. I know I was about 5 and you were about 10 years old; perhaps that's the first memory of our friendship.
It's impossible to list or remember all the stories we shared, but you were always a safe haven for me. As a child and teenager, I felt truly safe by your side, whether we walked downtown, went to Bixiga, or attended a rock concert.
You introduced us to Queen , Yes 's " Close to the Edge, and many other sounds when you borrowed LPs from the Rio Branco College . It was a magical time, from my childhood, our adolescence, and our adult lives.
I've always admired you, my friend. I've always wanted to be like you, whether as a bassist or as a composer of beautiful melodies and lyrics. I understand that I failed, but it was a great learning experience and a pleasure to have you as a role model and brother for so long.
As a child, I also remember that you always protected me (it couldn't have been easy for a 15 or 16-year-old boy to hang out with a 10 or 11-year-old), and you didn't care, you always respected me and treated me well, always with affection. Our true friendship began because we lived in the same building, we were in the same class, we learned to play instruments together, we started going out, drinking, going through some crazy stories and experiences, some countless, others more innocent, all hilarious, it was all very good.
I closely followed you as you achieved your dreams (which were ours), and I celebrated your success many times. I always rooted for you, always wished you the best. I closely followed your relationships, Mara and Thais, the birth of your daughter, I witnessed and felt your joy in many moments, and some sadness as well.
With time and the rush of our lives, we didn't see each other as often anymore, but every time we met, our heartfelt hugs were always genuine and affectionate. You were and will always be a part of my family. I will always listen to your wonderful songs to remember your talent and the unique melodies and lyrics you created, in your own unique, crazy, and wonderful way.
You were free, and you lived as you wanted, like the lyrics of your songs. They have so much of Pit in them, so much of Pierre, of Pedrão, even of Pedro Sérgio Murad Passarell, of 8A from Monte Belo, of 66-4128. So authentic and genuine, crazy and unique, you chose the life that made you happy, and who am I to judge you? I will never judge you, my friend, that's not what true friends do.
Your music will stay with us, and your childhood friends too, and the memories, and I will always remember the craziest guy I ever knew, probably the most brilliant, the funniest, so dear, kind and unique. Excuse the redundancy, but the repetition might be a way to emphasize my affection for you, and the longing I will feel.
Thank you for everything, my brother.
