Ross I first met Devapriya at Buddhafield Festival in about 2005, and then he was at the Child Friendly Retreat later that same year. I always liked him and got to like him even more as I got to know him better, finding that we both shared a very similar world view. When he offered me the chance of staying in the spare room at his flat a few years later, I jumped at the chance. It increased my commuting time to work from twenty minutes to an hour, but it was worth it and I ended up staying there about a year and a half. I remember us both spending many happy hours sitting round the kitchen table in the evening putting the world to rights. I can honestly say that I have ALWAYS enjoyed his company - and I can only really say this of very few people. And I found him a very straightforward bloke to live with, being totally clear about what were the do's and don’ts in his home (not that he was fussy about much), but at the same time being the perfect host and always making me feel completely welcome. He is a great teacher. I love his no-nonsense approach and have been very grateful for his uncompromising insight. Despite sometimes being quite unwell, I watched him accept this with remarkably good spirit and I learnt a lot from his pragmatic approach to his difficulties. Overall he helped me through quite a strange period - I had a job that didn't really suit me, combined with a return to a city I didn't much like. His wisdom along with his wicked sense of humour helped make it much more bearable and for me to make more sense of things. I've been asked to say some nice things about him, but I really don't have to try very hard. He is such a special person to me. My very dear friend, Devapriya.
Drew Deva was my Brother, Father, Partner in Crime, Godfather, Guru, Kalyana Mitra, Confidante, Teacher and above all these a Great Friend. He had the power to say the right things at the most effective time. He was simply one of the most extraordinary people I ever met. I miss him but he will always be in my heart and in the memories of so many he was there for.
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