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30th of November, 2007
Dear brother Wilbert,
I feel like writing to you now at this moment when I know you have passed away.
I write to you as a brother because you have been one of the persons who has been closest to me and whom I have most trusted and respected. You were always available with your big and compassionate heart and home—always available for anybody who needed support—an example for all of us.
When I think back on you and on our work together in Susila Dharma and ICDP, what strikes me is your generosity of feeling, your compassion for those in need, your modesty and faith, your optimism, humour and courage. Whatever difficulties we faced you never gave in, you accepted the situation and looked for better solutions, other opportunities. You always looked for what was positive, and if anything was negative you tended to joke about it. I can still hear your voice when people close to you got depressed and were on the edge of giving up “Oh come, on this is not so bad—after all… “Encouragement, optimism and emotional support followed you wherever you went. And also a lot of laughter and joking.
Then there was your devotion to the social work and to Bapak, and your constant reminder of Bapak’s statement of “the small and the big latihan”: the small latihan being the latihan in the latihan hall, and the big latihan was how we carry out our receivings in our daily life. That was what was what concerned you most… It came across in all your speeches.
Although you did not always follow the correct formal procedures, you always embodied the spirit and the heart of the work we were doing, and for that reason I always felt an enormous support from you, even when we were dealing with technical matters in ICDP—not to let technicalities overshadow the essence of our work—the heart of it… That is why you were so important in Subud, in Susila Dharma, and in ICDP; you embodied the heart, the spirit and the vision of our work – others could take care of the technicalities—which are also important.
We were a good team—all our compatriots in Susila Dharma and later ICDP—we had so many good moments together of laughter and joy and real brother/sisterhood, but also of deeply shared commitment to our mission in Subud and in life. And now when you have left us, I hope we will be able to continue this work in the spirit that you exemplify—with love and generosity of feeling.
Dear Suhartini, Rosani, and children,
you can be proud of Wilbert, he achieved in life more than what most people can dream of. He is respected and loved all over the world. He loved people—but most of all he loved all of you. We will all miss him, but his example will remain with us, and his spirit of joy and optimism. May God bless Wilbert!
From your brother in ICDP and Susila Dharma, Rukman
