Eric Obua vows to fulfil dad’s dream
FUNERALS are times of sorrow but at times they can also be quite revealing in the kind of people we really are.
JAMES BAKAMA
I say so
FUNERALS are times of sorrow but at times they can also be quite revealing in the kind of people we really are.
Amidst tears and screams, I once
caught a friend of mine stealthily exchanging thumbs up signs with his mother as a body of a relative was being lowered into a grave.
Burial is supposed to be the most hurtful of moments because it marks the last time you see someone. But to mother and son, the six feet drop couldn’t have evoked better feelings!
At Denis Obua’s memorial service and burial in Akol village yesterday, true pain was almost palpable.
There was no acting. Obua’s wife Fredah collapsed mid way her speech at All Saints Cathedral Nakasero. It took her son Eric long before he could compose himself for a speech.
Eric’s sister Hope, to the contrary, is a very tough lady. In one of her speeches as a stand in for Eric, tears streamed down her cheeks but emotions were not about to bar her from making her point.
“He was a fantastic father. He told us to dream big and work hard,†she stressed revealing how the late Obua valued education.
And if you thought football in the Obua family was only for the boys, you are mistaken.
“Our football skills are as good as those of our brothers,†Hope told a surprised crowd.
The late Obua was therefore not merely bragging when he always said that he was Mr. Football.
Obua’s love for the beautiful game actually started when he was a toddler. His mother bought Obua a ball that he would never part with.
This strong affinity to the ball must be one of the explanations for Obua’s spellbinding football skills years later. It is these same skills that he passed on to his children.
Obua’s death could actually spur his children to even greater heights. That’s the feeling you got if you listened to Eric speak on Friday in Nakivubo a few paces from the spot where his father collapsed and died.
While addressing mourners who turned to pay their last respects to his father, the URA FC footballer promised to fulfil his father’s dream by raising his game to the highest level.
There couldn’t have been a better commitment from a funeral.
jbakama@newvision.co.ug
I say so
FUNERALS are times of sorrow but at times they can also be quite revealing in the kind of people we really are.
Amidst tears and screams, I once
caught a friend of mine stealthily exchanging thumbs up signs with his mother as a body of a relative was being lowered into a grave.
Burial is supposed to be the most hurtful of moments because it marks the last time you see someone. But to mother and son, the six feet drop couldn’t have evoked better feelings!
At Denis Obua’s memorial service and burial in Akol village yesterday, true pain was almost palpable.
There was no acting. Obua’s wife Fredah collapsed mid way her speech at All Saints Cathedral Nakasero. It took her son Eric long before he could compose himself for a speech.
Eric’s sister Hope, to the contrary, is a very tough lady. In one of her speeches as a stand in for Eric, tears streamed down her cheeks but emotions were not about to bar her from making her point.
“He was a fantastic father. He told us to dream big and work hard,†she stressed revealing how the late Obua valued education.
And if you thought football in the Obua family was only for the boys, you are mistaken.
“Our football skills are as good as those of our brothers,†Hope told a surprised crowd.
The late Obua was therefore not merely bragging when he always said that he was Mr. Football.
Obua’s love for the beautiful game actually started when he was a toddler. His mother bought Obua a ball that he would never part with.
This strong affinity to the ball must be one of the explanations for Obua’s spellbinding football skills years later. It is these same skills that he passed on to his children.
Obua’s death could actually spur his children to even greater heights. That’s the feeling you got if you listened to Eric speak on Friday in Nakivubo a few paces from the spot where his father collapsed and died.
While addressing mourners who turned to pay their last respects to his father, the URA FC footballer promised to fulfil his father’s dream by raising his game to the highest level.
There couldn’t have been a better commitment from a funeral.
jbakama@newvision.co.ug