By: Njundu Drammeh
There is national unanimity that you ran your earthly race in grand style. We know you are now in a better place. We pray Allah grants you the best place in Jannatul Firdaus. You have taught us that it is not the length but the quality of one’s life which should matter.
“A lily of a day
Is fairer far in May,
Although it fall and die that night—
It was the plant and flower of Light….” Ben Jonson
And about your life, you have taught us that ultimately, we should all care about our legacies; how we want to be remembered long after we are gone. The legacy that may endure could be how we positively affect the lives of others. From your life, we see why we must stand for something, die for a cause, or be a shoulder to lean on, a back to carry someone, a heart to care and love.
From your life, we know now that to succeed, as said by Emerson, is:
“to laugh often and much: To win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children, to earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty, to find the best in others, to leave the world a bit better whether by a healthy child, a garden patch, or a redeemed social condition; to know even one life has breathed easier because you lived.
This is to have succeeded.”
As said by Longfellow you live reminds us that:
We can make our lives sublime,
And, departing, leave behind us
Footprints on the sands of time;
It is now our task, us “sailing o’er life’s solemn main”, to do our part to the best of our abilities so that when we leave, an inevitability, mortals and angels would say “here lies a human who did the best for humans”.
Think of your legacy, how you would want to be remembered long after you are gone, how you would want the angels to report about you.
Mind your character and credibility (integrity) and be competent at what you do.
Connect with people. As J.C. Maxwell says “people don’t care how much you know, until they know how much you care”
Adieu V.P Joof. May Jannatul Firdaus be your final abode. Till we meet…
