"The last memory I have of Ali was from yesterday in school. While everyone else was singing along to the Christmas song at the end of IHMC, Ali was the one person constantly going backstage to make sure a big christmas tree that had been left there wouldn't fall on the stage and disrupt the event. He was making sure that it didn't spoil anyone else's fun that afternoon, and that says a lot about the kind of person Ali was."

I was out for breakfast with a friend, just about ready to order when a flurry of texts came both our ways. They were about Ali.
At first, we both brushed it off as a joke. Don't we often jest with the phrase 'jump off a cliff' and so on? It couldn't have been true, our minds had decided.

But then came the confirmations. Then came the school's letter. Then came the news articles.

When I heard about Ali's untimely passing, I thought about a lot of things. I thought about the last time I saw him, which I just described above.
I thought about the last thing I said to him, which was simply a question considering we had come across each other many times that day. It wasn't anything profound or emotional. It was just a simple conversation.
And perhaps that pains me the most.

You can't predict the unpredictable. I couldn't predict the unfortunate passing away of Ali and his grandfather. Would I have said something different to Ali,
the last time we had met, had I known? Surely.

I wished that I could've had one more chance to talk to Ali. However, this wish would imply that Ali was no more with us.

Ali's presence is warmer than ever before. He survives in the one place that not even God himself can take away from us: our hearts.

I decided to then build this online memorial for Ali; an immortalization of his life, on the web, in addition to that in our hearts.

If you ever feel the need to communicate to Ali, whether through a message or a picture, I hope that you find this place helpful. I believe that Ali continues to watch over us, as our guardian angel.
And I also believe (or rather, hope) that he has internet access in heaven so that he can see the outpouring of love exuding from the pictures and messages that people leave behind here.


To Ali: a beloved son, brother, friend, and much more.

Dear Ali,

the shining light
in our starry sky
illuminating night,
with all your might,

you've done so much,
without reply,
we've never seen such,
an amazing guy.


The days that have passed,
have fast gone by,
hope you had a blast,
with us by your side.

Ali, it's time you rest,
as it's our turn to try,
to live life your way, the best,
with your light nearby.


This isn't a farewell,
It isn't a goodbye,

This isn't to dwell,
It's just an FYI,

That, Ali, buddy,
good friend, good guy,
you're always welcome,
to simply drop by.


-Adarsh Sinha