Give God de Glory

Nearly two years ago my friend Andrew Cummings put me on oath not to tell anyone what he was going to disclose. He said dat he was informed dat he was being recommended foh ah Q.C., den he smiled and said: “Boy Q.C. could be anything eh, starting wid Quality Control”. Dat’s de kind ah humor yuh get accustomed to when yuh around him. By the time ah opened my mouth to give him our constant remember, he joined in and like ah poem we both add: “Give God de glory” words dat we share wid each other at de end of our daily phone conversations.{{more}}

Ah would run out ah space and time if ah only attempt to touch on his exploits on de athletics field, ah leave dat to Monty Eustace, or his hey day in de High Courts partnering de great Alec Hughes who was also ah Q.C. So ah will begin five years ago, when adversity turned up, uninvited and like de story of Job in de Bible, only de breath of life was not taken from Andrew. He was such ah sweet person that he had to become ah Sugar Case. And when his condition was officially diagnosed, everything start leaving him, body-weight, sight dat was rescued by surgery, when both kidneys failed and de end seemed near, Jeremiah, ah dear friend gave him one ah his kidneys.

Like ah man under house arrest, Andrew spent almost three years battling foh his life. Needless to say how lonely it was foh him, but foh his faithful, loving, caring wife Jackie and children, parents, siblings, uncles and aunts and ah few loyal friends. Yuh could say he was abandoned, no doubt considered ah write off. But in all ah dis, he became humbled, he never lost faith in God. In his bedridden condition, he became hooked on Channel 25, the Catholic Channel where he found solace. Many stormed Heaven in prayer for him. Andrew himself prayed many times a day for healing and deliverance, and indeed dey came in de end. During dat period of confinement, I observed ah complete transformation in his demeanor, he became ah full time student of de Bible and spoke only of love and forgiveness wid ah passion. He had by now lost all love foh material things as he grew stronger in his Christian walk.

Slowly his ole, physical athletic self rebounded with sharp wit and biting sense of humour – a true sign of his recovery. Den one afternoon he phoned and told me dat next Tuesday would be 910 days since he has been out of circulation, dat he cannot allow another 911 to happen, so he will be at work from Monday. True to his word he called on Monday and said “I will see yuh by appointment dis morning at my office”! It is now two years since he is back at work, but not widout minor hiccups, de thing is dat he is now ah different person wid ah different spirit dat nothing will hold him down.

And de Q.C. that he now holds is time foh ah celebration of Praise and Thanksgiving, something dat is quite in order and foh all ah dis, we give God de Glory.

WHEN YUH DEAD YUH DUN

Ole people say “Man dead, grass grow by he door step”. Dey also say “Hog dead he nah care bout hot water”. But de one dat comes up all de time is “When yuh dead yuh dun”! Many years ago ah went to Antigua on ah CCC conference. Ah had ah roommate who was ah truly, committed family man. He kept talking bout his wife and three young children all de time. One night ah asked him to tell me in his own words de extent of his love foh his family. He said to me “ my friend, if ah was to die now, ah know my wife is still young and she will most likely get ah fellar, my worry is not wid she and de fellar, but dem three lickle children. Like all children, dey would need ah lickle correction every now and den, but only dey mother is authorized to do dat. Now like all step-father, he would have occasion to speak to them and correct dem at times, but if ever dat fellar was to lose his place, raise his hand and hit any ah my lickle girls, and you ain’t see me come back from my grave and find he way ever he dey, and chop off de same hand dat he lash my child wid, tell de world I say, when yuh dead yuh dun”!

Lie-Za, is who reminded me dat Wednesday 5th March was two years since Glen Jackson dead and how shameful it look, in only two short years and everybody, including de ULP foh which he did so much, forget dey was ah man name Glen, grass ah grow pon Glen door step. But alas, when she heard dat de Party was having Rally last Sunday evening, she could ah swear dat it was to whip up support foh de Police in finding Glen’s real killer. Never! Nothing go so! De rally was to “Support de Come-rod”. Yuh know she got de nerve to ask me “support de Come-rod in what?”

But what bring tears to she eyes is when she listen de Rally on de Radio, how speaker after speaker had dey say, but not ah sole remember to mention de name Glen sorry, Glen Jackson. Dey did mention Glen as in Glen Beach. Even when de introduced Glen Beach, she say well dey go remember Glen now. Didn’t happen!

So we start to reminisce bout Glen, how he took on Kay-Blue-Why-Less and dey high telephone rates, and is Glen’s constant hammering that brought about changes in de telephone rates in SVG. Was Glen who did tek on Chiquitta and Dole during de early days ah de Banana war. Glen again was de one-man-army who Shake Up and Shake Down de NDP until dey were voted out ah office.

Den Lie-Za finally said: “ Yuh see all de latest happening on de pull-it-to-kill front, de PM alleged “brush wid de Law”, de police bungling in de Glen Jackson murder trial, Nice Radio on de hill kicking up ah storm, WE-FM Shaken Up wid light from Star FM, and up to now Glen ain’t come back from de grave to Drop ah Bum, tell de world dat she Lie-Za say “when yuh dead yuh dun”! And wid dat ah dun foh dis week, and ah gone again.

One Love Bassy