Very rarely does anything or anybody challenge an age-old proverb or saying such as the English label, ‘a Jack of all trades and a master of none’, but General Tumwine made a show down of this seemingly infallible trueism.

Tumwine mastered fine art, mastered cattle keeping, was an undisputed master at war. He even went on to become a second-generation vanguard of the East African Revival - a spiritual revolution that turned this country inside out at the turn of the century - by immortalizing it through a Christian tv Channel – RITETV - still online.

That a section of our society insensitively mud slung the deceased was best reacted to by his son who said that no one had power to control what the social media flung on platforms, but one could only strive to manage the response. It should not come as a surprise, though, since even the son of God was slandered: called a winebibber, a homosexual because he loved John –his disciple and believed to have pimped Mary Magdalene. Another wise thinker advised that slander should be treated like mud; to be ignored when wet but when left to dry just gets flipped off.

The incorruptible General was famed for being contented, shunning the trending spirit of materialism and amassing wealth at any cost; preferring to use his own income to educate almost 100 orphans; taking them through school and even university. As their queue snaked its way to the coffin, tears streamed uncontrollably on the faces of mourners.

Eulogies followed one another, and it suddenly struck me that the interpretation of contentment based on such biblical lines as,” There is great gain in godliness with contentment; for we brought nothing into the world and we shall take nothing out of it,” is equated to being laid back, or laissez faire, shunning hard work. I felt that Christendom owed to God’s people a clarification of work ethic from the point of view of the bible.

Paul the great evangelist and writer of a big chunk of scriptures penned these words in Acts20:34-35,” You know that these hands ministered to my own needs (working in manual labour) and to the people who were with me. In everything I showed you by example that by working hard in this way, you must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus that he himself said,” It is more blessed to give than receive.”

Contentment is opposed to greed, selfishness and failure to share with those in need, echoing the General’s philosophy of: things, values and sharing.

We equally owe to many a clarification of some religious terms we take for granted and repeat when a believer leaves this earthly life. Often these are misinterpreted and seen as fallacies. Notably, Paul’s words: “our citizenship is in heaven”. Followed by an old time hymn,” On Christ the solid rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand.”

All these expressions and many more in the bible refer to the impermanency of this physical life often curtailed by death whether timely or untimely. However, a balanced believer, well knowing, as Jim Reeves sang, “This world is not my home, I am just passing through” doesn’t just lie in bed and fail to work waiting to be ruptured.

The General worked and even fought to set his country free from bloody regimes and those who knew him well, he was crazily patriotic. It is therefore a question of permanency and eternity. Surely most of us have visited friends, and my dialect has even a word for prolonged visits -okuzinduka. It doesn’t matter how hospitable the host is, ultimately the visitor goes home unless he is a vagabond or loiterer - ekirare in Runyankore.

So, simply put, the dual nature of man means that while still in the body which is mortal, he lives and improves planet earth as he prepares his soul for an everlasting sojourn with God. Another thing is that for a Christian, gratitude and appreciating what planet earth offers should replace complaining, anger and discontent due to the negative forces equally at work here on earth. General Tumwine had mastered this as he did other trades.

In hind sight, his not so rhythmic tunes like ‘Ainuunu nkaguma nkareeba Uganda…its fauna and flora’, must have put a smile on God’s face. As we all know, Uganda is so gifted by nature that probably in the whole world, it is the only country where shops for clothes carry outfits-year in year out- for what the French call été éternel – perennial summer.

In parenting sessions, these days, there is a trending expression: ’investing in children rather than investing for them’. Either the departed General purposed to invest love, trust and unity in his children or it came naturally to him, but his investment paid off with such dividends that in his last days on earth, it was so beautiful to witness such showers of love and care on to the ailing general as he soldiered on to the next life. Each offspring, extremely different from the other-uniquely nurtured - for he abhorred uniformity - played their sterling roles in providing a safety net for their grieving mother, relatives and hundreds of friends.

The General’s body may be lying in the grave but his soul is matching on.