Homage to my Mentor: Rachel Devins
My mentor, my brain crush, my friend.
Rachel had asked me to speak at her funeral and I chickened out. Earlier that year, when she got the devastating news of cancer returning, she wrote a letter to her students and asked me to read it in class because she could barely speak by then. It was the second hardest thing I had to do in my life.
The first being carrying her to her resting place.
I went to class with her every week and with the help of her wonderful TA (teaching assistant), she continued teaching the class. It was inspiring to witness her dedication to her students.
By then, she had decided to plan her own funeral. A beautiful Jewish ceremony, led by a female Rabbi, full of surprises, including a Muslim AND hijabi pallbearer: me.
I didn’t say no to that. I think it was the thought of being the last one to hold her that made this so special to me and so deeply ingrained in my memory. I remember trying not to cry and then bursting out to tears when I turned around and saw the rest of the crew tear up. We just held each other tightly and sobbed after we placed her in the hearse.
We cried again while walking her through the cemetery to the sound of the sacred Torah being read out loud. I remember walking into the funeral home and debating whether I needed to wear another scarf on top of my own hijab or not. I decided not to. The men wore kippahs regardless of their religion and the women wore little scarves. I don’t think any of the guests were confused by my presence there; when you knew Rachel, you knew she touched so many lives regardless of race, religion or any Middle Eastern conflicts. We talked about this topic often. We fantasized about telling the world about our love and admiration for each other — about this beautiful friendship between two women, one Jewish and one Muslim.
I remember the look on the face of the man attending to the funeral home-surprised, touched and probably wondering if I knew where I was going. He was even more confused when he asked for the pallbearers to stand next to the casket…and there I went rushing to fulfill my last duty towards my beautiful friend.
Rachel was first my teacher in 2008, then became my mentor, my friend and eventually a second mother to me. Rachel was about doing good in the world. In her work, in her family life, in her friend circle, in the volunteering she did. Even during her treatment, her main purpose was to put a smile on people’s faces. She dressed up as a superhero and wore funky wigs to go to her treatments. She was not letting it defeat her.
Ever since I met her, she took me under her wings and mentored me until her last moments on this earth. While going to her treatments, Rachel was my field supervisor in my last year of Master's.
I watched her work with people who you would never think would accept flipcharts and smelly markers. She embodied process consultation, open systems thinking and was a fearless consultant. For those of you in our field, let me tell you why I had a huge brain crush on Rachel. I watched her do a unique design with a group of very serious IT managers and directors, then get them to agree to do a Participative Design Workshop with 130 IT staff from all over the world. Back then, I wasn’t in the Master’s yet and I had no idea that what I was witnessing with her was a rare occurrence of OST methods in practice. This all might sound like gibberish to some of you but just trust me, she was brilliant.
I can’t seem to have a conversation about work without mentioning her. I still refer to her projects, to her designs, to her teaching methods, and to her lovely and lively personality. You were not bored with Rachel. I was constantly intellectually stimulated. She had a deep desire to pass on her knowledge to the world and boy did she do that. I know I am speaking for hundreds, if not thousands of students and people who were touched by her — she was a beacon of light wherever she went and her legacy still lives on today through her students.
I’m sure I am not the only one but reading her book* helped me dream of her a lot. She was often singing for me while I wept in my dream. Always true to her promise to ease others’ pain, while forgetting her own. She seemed happy.
My dear friend Rachel, my mentor, my idol, my brain crush, I hope you are in a beautiful and peaceful place.
*Rachel’s book “we root, we leaf” was recently published thanks to the amazing editing by award-winning author Lorna Crozier and with the help of her sister Susan Devins and her friends Regina Pereira and Bonnie Thornborough. This poignant reliving of her experiences, the ups and downs of her cancer journey, and a beautiful collection of poems will transport you to a world of vulnerability, deep emotions, and hope for the good of this world. All proceeds of Rachel’s book will be donated to the West Island Cancer Wellness Center in Montreal, Canada.
