For
more than 15 years, Anthony DiMaria has balanced acting and researching
the horrendous murder of his uncle, Jay Sebring, by followers of
Charles Manson 47 years ago.
DiMaria was only 3 at the time, and
his memories of Sebring, who was 35 when he was killed, were of romping
with Sebring when he visited the DiMaria family in Las Vegas.
One
impact of the murder? “I sleep facing the bedroom door. I know that
people can come in and slaughter me and the people I love,” DiMaria
said.
His
documentary and his acting “are rooted in storytelling, they’re not
separate. Both are my lifelong endeavors,” DiMaria said. “Both are
examinations of the human spirit.”
The human spirit could use some
closer examination in today’s troubled world, where violence and art
walk together but seldom in sync.
It's interesting that Anthony says he sleeps facing the door out of fear. Patty mentioned being fearful too. Travis Alexander's brother said in his victim impact statement that he couldn't take a shower without constantly opening his eyes, for fear that Jodi would stab him too.
These families who have lost loved ones to violent crime are wounded, not only with the loss of a loved one, but the loss of security and safety. They sharply have a knowledge that your home is not your haven, but can be a place of vicious, horrific murderous activity. They literally live in fear the rest of their lives. Surely the parole board can take that into account when deciding parole for these monstrous killers.
I certainly wish the family members of the victims to have peace, to be able to lay their heads on their pillows and get to sleep, without worry about monsters under the bed, or climbing through their windows.
