Rachel Mertel passed away last friday. Some have speculated that it was because of a recent lack of social interactions. However, discovered in an autopsy her untimely death was caused by extreme amounts of hydrocarbons and cobalt (toxic ingredients found in oil based paint) that was inhaled and absorbed through her skin. Ironically her last finished piece was an interpretation of death titled "oops"
She was a wonderful daughter, sister, and friend. A lot of people knew and could describe her as caring and generous. Those of us who were fortunate to know her better than that, knew she was an incredibly talented individual with a knack for bringing optimism into the darkest of times. Her native tongue was sarcasm, and anyone who ever spoken to her can attest to that. She loved to laugh, but hated the sound of it when she did. She was a perfectionist and couldn’t settle for anything less than the absolute best, which, often ended up doing her more harm than good. She constantly tried to fix and learn from the mistakes she made, to better herself as a person, friend, student, etc... Her favorite song was Vienna by Billy Joel, and regularly tried to live her life according to the message she saw in it.
“But you know that when the truth is told
That you can get what you want
Or you can just get old
You're gonna kick off before you even get halfway through
When will you realize...Vienna waits for you”
-Vienna, Billy Joel
A lot of people tend to go through life never really realizing their passion. She definitely found hers, and sadly, also died from it. Though it was not plastered all over her Facebook or wardrobe, she was an artist. An extremely modest one at that. She expressed herself loudly through her art and kept the world guessing in person. To be fair, a gallery could paint a better image of who she was than the written words on this page. I hope she managed to be a positive effect influence in all of your lives. She will be missed, but hopefully not forgotten.
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