ABOUT LIFE AND DEATH

Dear Reader,

How about we take a moment to reflect on life, death and a few things that may be attached to it? This author would like to reflect on the moments within the last 12 months that his dear daddy passed on to glory as Christians would say.

The first time the word “death” came into context with me was more than 20 years ago when I heard some Quranic school pupils sing about the date of birth and death of prophet Mohammed. They claimed it happened on the same day of the week. I was so curious and I asked my dad if the implication of the song is that if a man was born on the 20th of December then all things being equal he would pass on the 20th of December whatsoever year it is meant to happen. Ridiculous, isn’t it? That was my dad’s thoughts too. The question wasn’t answered but I know better now.

31st December, 1999 a man committed suicide in the house that I lived. It was also my first time hearing of that. I saw him earlier that day as he was having a discussion with my dad. I overheard him say something about not making it into the millennium but I was lost and didn’t know what to think. That night was probably my first horrible night filled with many random terrifying dreams. The man was lying next door and I imagined what it meant to be dead. Several people died around afterward, some old and some young. However the death of older ones gave us something to look forward to. Yes, food.

Sesan moved to the house beside us, he was a bit older than me and he was probably always eager to show me he knew much better. On one of such days, we had just had a heavy downpour and it was getting dark. I can not remember what triggered the conversation but we were talking about death and places people go to after death. Of course we both knew that good people and bad people can’t go to the same place. Then he said paradise is a place where you can get anything you want. He said for instance, if you want rice and beans, immediately you think about it, it will appear beside you. I imagined it but I was not much of a foodie so the promise of favorite food was not enough to me fantasized death or even paradise.

A little pause will do at the moment but I will surely continue in a few days as I’m writing this in memory of my late dad.