DEATH OF AN ICON, NELSON MANDELA 1918-2013

I sadly heard the jaw dropping morning news break, interrupting normal programs, briefing the death of an icon, Madiba, Nelson Mandela, aged 95, “At Last”. He lived it to the last gasp of his breath on the fateful night of Thursday, December 05, 2013.

Everyone dies, nobody lives forever. Madiba lived a life of principle. He lived a life of convictions. He lived it with moral courage according to his dreams and ideals much higher than himself. A life of principle lived to the fullest, a lifelong journey, with steadfast endurance, with so much gloom and pain in the process. All that for the advancement of freedom through his life long struggle in order for social justice and equality to prevail in his homeland and around the world.

Madiba, a great soul, faithful to his convictions, has stood his ground through thick and thin. He has stood his ground indeed with rare endurance and stamina to the last minute of his life. I know Madiba would disagree with my use of brutal words in describing even his political enemies because he honestly reconciled with those who jailed him without bitterness. Therefore, I say no more about his torture. Even if he was a fighter, it doesn’t equate to his torture and his people’s annihilation for freedom.  

But there are certain qualities of him that one can dare assert that Madeba is a rare breed even among that heroic generation. Always dreaming and desiring for a better and humane political order for his people, he never sold or surrounded his soul to the powers that be. Nor did he ever abandon his convictions to trade for the comforts and material gains which he could have acquired so easily with the kind of intellectual calibre, many facets of knowledge, as well as the practical wisdom he was imbued with regard to the social and economic edifice upon which a post-industrial society like the South Africa has been built. Nelson Mandela chose to live, however, a simple life, a modest life, with an unspoken contempt for the glitter that dominates this world that puts premium on gadgets, and all those outward signs and symbols of “success”.

One with a profound sense of self-worth and self-respect, yet he was a modest man, a humble man, always a man of the people at home and around the world.
Nelson Mandela, Madiba, we love you, we respect you profoundly. The struggle for which you gave your entire life with unyielding conviction shall continue and prevail. We can’t thank you enough for your indomitable legacy; dedicating your life for us, magnanimously inspiring us, struggling against injustice for us, incarcerated for us and sacrificing so much of your life for us.

May we cherish the ideas and ideals he struggled for throughout his life.
It’s hard to say Goodbye our dear Madiba. May your soul Rest In Peace.
To his fans and devoted supporters around the world who have chanted the “Free Nelson Mandela” song arduously to free him, I take this opportunity to congratulate you for doing just that and my condolences on his passing.

To his big families & brave South Africans may our thoughts and comforts be with you at farewelling, a man who gave you what you’ve been yearning for: freedom, peace & happiness, Madiba.

"The greatest glory of living lies not in never falling, but in rising every time you fall."

WE SHALL MEET AGAIN.