“This is the hardest moment of my life,” wrote Mike Psillakis in a dedication to his twin brother, who died by shark attack while surfing this past weekend. The Psillakis twins were an important part of the surfing community in their NSW (New South Wales) community in northern Sydney, Australia. And now the family and the community at large is mourning their great loss.
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Mike’s twin, Mercury Psillakis, was 57 years old, and he left behind his wife and daughter. Mercury was surfing with a group at Long Reef Beach on Saturday when a large shark attacked him from behind as he attempted to warn other swimmers about the animal. The shark bit off “multiple limbs,” and Mercury succumbed to his injuries.
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“He was my Ying, I was his Yang,” wrote Mike Psillakis in his Instagram post. “He was my mirror, my blood, my DNA [. . .] Mercury was my life, my right hand man. Words cannot describe the bond we had together growing up. We had our own language and shared the same dreams, literally. The experiences we had together were truly amazing.”
He encourages his community to tell their loved ones that they love them, to “hold them tight,” and to “get rid of the filter that hides who you really are.”
See Mike’s full tribute to his twin brother, Mercury, who died in a shark attack, here:
Header stock image by Abstract Aerial Art/Getty Images
