Today I thought I would make first contact because I haven't heard from you in a while.  I'm on my way to James Oluboya's funeral in Chiswick West London, I've decided to take a day off work to pay my respects to him and his family.  This is perhaps the first funeral I've been to in over 10 years so I didn't even have a suit and had to buy one on the Saturday.  Funerals bring death and morality closer to home and always makes you look at yourself just that little bit more.  I was compelled to go to this funeral as I was once a close neighbour to James after I left University and move in beside him.  He was truly an amazing person, a man of collossal generousity and compassion.  You would have to see how enormous James was in personality which actually dwarfed his physical frame.  Size isn't everything which it comes to physicality, character and charisma is certain James personality with which he had in abundance. 

The first time I met James was when I came from in from training at the local gym around the corner called the Jubilee club.  I'd been max'ing out, trying to lift my maximum capacity, in a vain attempt to build quality and large muscle.  Samuel told me James was coming to say hello, I sat in the front room watch some crap on the TV.  The curtains was fairly thin but you could see shapes and people passing.  With no warning the outside became dark as James unbelieveable frame passed by the front window.  The front door bell rang out as normal.  I stood in the hall way waiting in anticipation as I saw what produced itself through the door way. 

The door opened and a headless, shoulderless man completely covered the doorway.  I looked into the front room for a second so I could readjust my eyes.  I looked back on the spectacle infront of me, as I saw a man dip down very very low and turned completely sideways to fit through the door.  I could feel the weight of my bottom jaw wide open and just hanging there as utter disbelieve. He took two steps forward and he was in front of me, eclipsing my view of anything else that might of existed in the hallway.  He stretched out his hand, and to him what may seem like a whisper, boomed out, in a sub bass woofer voice, "hi I'm James!" I placed my hand into what seemed like five fingers resembling an elephants trunk, in thickness and roughness, that actually covered the whole of my lower forearm.  I actually stopped to look at my arm too see the affect because I'd never before had an arm shake like this before.  I once had a friend who was an ex-boxer called Ned Rawlings from long family of boxers which went all the way back to the first black man to win the world championships in England.  James was of this illk.

James was an historical figure that once you met him he remained with you for the rest of your life.  He was an extraordinary man who showed us all that the size of a man didn't and shouldn't stop you from being gentle, caring and loving to all fellow humans.  We were all from the same family and that is something which all of us should remember.  I know that the world has lost a great campaigner, who campaigned in his own way, without becoming a celebrity or parading himself on the television as somebody special.  He was the peoples unknown champion and worked quitely and powerfully in the hearts of all of those who had the pleasure of knowing him. 

This email is very hard to write without a few tears flowing down my cheek because of the way he was taken from us all.  You never expect to die with any confrontation you have on the street or in the work place or just anywhere.  Each and everyday you negotiate life, you negotiate people and you negotiate society around you.  There are many many beautiful people in the world around us, and each day we all interact and meet these people and share experiences of helping each other all our way.  But what reminds us that out of every 10 people you meet in the street or in your lifetime there is only 1 person that will do an act of evil. In effect showing us that the world isn't a perfect place to life and we must all do our little bit to ensure that we all can pull together to enjoy the short time have here.  Love conquers all. Love is the one commodity that we are born with and the more you give to others, the more you will receive in your life.  Is love greater than money, it is down to the individual how much value they put on money.  For myself, love has historically bought peace as well as war to countless millions of people on this planet.  When death and killing and violence has weakened the hearts of many a brave man and woman.  Love has prevailed and has always shown every man woman and child lets just love each other and get on with the sometimes difficult job of sharing the planet and being together with all our differences. 

I am heart broken today with the prospect of having to go to visit a friend who will be lowered into the ground and consumed by the earth.  I always ask this question, why is it that the meek and gentle people, people who are shining examples of humanity and love, are always killed first or have there time cut short.  This is just so unfair, so cruel and so unjust.  Thousands of heartless evil people exist in our world killing and murdering freely never seem to have any problems in life.  If they die less killing occurs.  This is the balance which just seems so wrong.  The world will miss a great man, a great big man, a man who had character and could dig deep when it was necessary outside of the ring and inside of it.  I for one admire him, after over 10 years of being in his company, I am still affected by the infectious warmness of his natural character.  Not many people will know or understand to what the terms generosity of spirit actually means.  I remember many years back, I met a lady who once said that term to me.  She said, "Mark I just do not have the generosity of spirit to be in a relationship." I was shocked as I never thought such eloquent words would come from such a beautiful thing as she was.  However, today I have had the pleasure of meeting someone who was naturally high spirited and did have the generosity of spirit for  all of us to understand and learn from. 

 

I haven't written a blog for nearly half a year now, this blog started as a email to my pending girlfriends arrival from Greece on the September 19th.  I copied the email and pasted it here, I feel that my grief should be made public.  If there is anyone out there who knew of James Oluboya, the should also celebrate him and say a little prayer to god in the hope that god will keep him save from all harm.  For man still at large who shot him, my words are god forgive them, they know not what they do.  It is for all of us to forgive this person but he must be brought to justice, other innocent people may also have there lives taken away if this man is not apprehended soon. 

 

I cried while writing this piece earlier, I'm not related to James neither do I know his family very well.  When I was going through my turbulent relationship with the beautiful Anna, it was James who brough peace and love into our lives.  How can you now respect and love anyone for doing that.  The burning question in my mind is why, why James? Why couldn't it have been some dictator in rhanda or wherever genocide takes place.  I cried for his family, his sons and daughters who will no longer have a father, a role model to look up to.  I cried in public inside a public library visible to other library goers.  Sitting at a computer terminal dressed in black, I wasn't sure others would know why I sit here now and write my heart out.  This, is perhaps the only way I can truly express my feelings in full.  I have only ever written when true emotion has drawn me from my cocoon.  London has worped my emotional flexibility and I've hidden this, but today, I cried in front of everybody and will do so again.

 

God bless you James