Dustin Huard was (is) an amazing young man. From the time he was born, until the day before he moved on to another cosmic dimension, Dustin presented me daily with the gift of his presence and his love. When he was 4 I spent the summer living with his mom, my sister Liz, while I worked my first summer job, after my freshman year of college. This is where our  journey really began.

It was during this time that I introduced him to the outdoors. He paid me back by getting me to the top of Mount Whitney (the highest point  in the continenntal US). Dustin Loved to hike and explore the outdoors. After moving to Sedona, his love of the trek grew. He knew the trails and special places amoungst the red rocks, probably, better than anyone. Dusty (d-lite, d-dog, Dusty-d) had a deep connnection to nature. He also had a deep connection to his inner world. He meditated everyday, created guided meditations and loved to explore these realms too.

That’s what he truly was: an explorer, a seeker…

Dusty was… well Dusty. He was deep. He was also a lot of fun. He was goofy and quirky. He didn’t just wallk to the beat of his own drummer, he re-created this drummer moment by moment. At his cousin (my nephew) Dylan’s wedding reception, he got the party started. The classic moment… the band (DJ, whatever) starts playing the music and everyone just sits on their hands… We’ve all been there. Dusty would have none of it, so he got up solo and free danced around the whole room, followed by my niece Arianna, then by the whole lot of us. This is what he did. He inspired by action.

Here is a little about Dusty from his MySpace page:

I’m interested in nature, and dreams. I’m interested in discovering the elements of self within the alchemy of life. I’m interested in space portals, and time warps. I’m interested in dimensional overtones, and metaphysics. I’m interested in motion, and balance. I’m interested in pure harmony. I’m interested in channels of love (not television channels). I’m interested in mass production of creativity. I’m interested in my interests when what I find interesting is something that’s interesting. Hmmm.. That’s interesting… It’s funny when people do things.

When you met Dusty, you were touched. He looked in your eyes and gave you love. Simply put, you were never the same. It is impossible to feel that depth of connection and not be forever changed. That was my boy. I have never met a more authentic being. What you saw was what you got. Dustin was free with his love. Dusty lived his truth, he was generous, he was wise beyond his years and above all, like I said he was authentic. In retrospect I am truly amazed by the sheer depth of his love!

I have an amazing family… truly amazing! But it was Dustin who always had my back. If I needed help with anything, he never hesitated. If I had to move, or do heavy lifting Dusty never hesited to volunteer his help. When my server crashed leaving 80 websites offline, it was Dusty who sat with me until they were all rebuilt and back online. If you asked, he showed up. He always showed up.

Dusty loved music, working sometimes as a DJ spinning records, but mostly spinning records for himself… for the joy. Dusty created his own mixes and recorded a few CD’s. I have only one sample, so here it is:

8 years ago, I got Dustin his first job in the film industry. And he took it from there, working on features like Training Day, commercials (he has been been working with Errol Morris for the last 5 years) and music videos. Dusty directed his own shorts and just a few weeks ago, shot and was editing a pro celebrity volleyball tournament for charity.

An amazing young man!

When Dusty first came to LA he lived with me. What is cool is that I am blessed with an extraordinary family. We have our issues but we love each other. With Dusty in LA we got to hang out a lot (in hindsight, however, it really wasn’t enough and I guess it never is). Before he left us, Dusty had a chance to reconnect with his cousin Dr. Dylan (a chiropractor and my other nephew). That is so cool.

This year had been a difficult one for my nephew, Dusty. He was robbed with a gun in his face in Las Vegas (they caught the guys and Dustin testified against them. They are all (4 guys) in prison.) Face down on the ground, Dusty asked the gunman for his walllet and credit cards back, explaining what a pain in the ass it is to cancel and get new ones… They guy actually gave them back, taking only Dusty’s cash and jewelry… f-ing ballsy, if you ask me… Remember, his own drummer.

This weighed very heavy on his heart and gave him much fear.

Then about a month ago, Dustin was in an auto accident, while on a run at work (driving his bosses car). Waiting to turn right, a car ran a red light, struck another car then finally Dustin’s car. He was taken to  the hospital, not seriously injured it seemed. He had pain in his knee, back and neck. The initial exam didn’t reveal much…

Then the case got handed over to the state (workman’s comp)…. This is where it starts to suck.

The pain grew worse. Dustin saw a different doctor who concluded that Dustin may need surgery on his knee, and requested an MRI. Workman’s Comp, denied him, instead they gave him crutches and pain meds…

For the last week or 2 Dusty had been trying to get this resolved, getting the run around from the insurance companies. During this time, always the one to watch my back, Dusty watched my house and took care of my cats and garden 3 different times while I was out of town… hobbling around my house on crutches and in pain.

Our feeling is that on Tuesday night Dustin took  the wrong mix of medications, went to sleep and never woke up. I take solice in the fact that he went gently into that good night…

Dusty, D-Dog, D-lite, Dusty-D… I miss you and I love you! Every day that have known you (since you were merely months old) has been a gift to me and I am richer for it.
Wonderful travels to you -

Love you – Uncle Lennie