Bred in Grace and Truth

Social Media Platform was flooded wid Tributes and Praise last Tuesday when de sudden death of Mr. Social Me-day-yah himself, Jerry George, hit de airwaves. Sir James said his bit quite appropriately: “Jerry was a vanguard for Truth, Democracy and Transparency.” Ah would put it differently, “Jerry George truly believed in God, so he decided long time to ‘fight till death’ when he saw how Truth, De-muck-we-see for Democracy and Transparency or de lack thereof had disappeared, gone on ah Long Vacation Leave in his Blessed Homeland.”

Luckily foh me ah was able on many occasion to give Jerry his Roses when he was alive. Ah have given up on Tributes, too much Hip-hock-cracy, half Truths and un-truths. So much so, ah decided dat when ah dead ah would have already written my own tribute. But let it be known dat when Searchlight started 25 years ago; Jerry George was among de “Founding Brothers.” De I-dear of a Paper was Oscar Allen’s; de name “Searchlight”, de weekly Newspaper, was Renrick Rose’s, and de name of de company “Interactive Media Limited (IML)” was all Jerry’s.

De Founding Brothers did not have de kind ah cash dat ah Newspaper called foh; so de Paper was built wid ah lot ah labour of Love, ah did not say “Labour Love!” Jerry’s role was pivotal, as he was one of de few persons in SVG at de time wid computer skills, dat was familiar with de technology required foh producing a Newspaper. We vividly recall de days when he journeyed to Barbados every week (foh months), wid only ah lunch allowance in his pocket, to work along wid de Nation’s Production staff to produce that weekly edition of Searchlight.

And den ah remember when Digicel was trying to set up shop in SVG, Jerry, Mr. Vanguard himself, was again at de helm of de Digicel Team of negotiators. De Company was not even officially opened, had not sold ah single phone. But Jerry invited me as Chairman of de Nine Mornings Committee, to meet de Digicel Big man. De company wanted immediately to register its bold presence and serious intention. Dat year, Digicel gave us ah sponsorship dat was much more dan its competitor. Jerry was Born, Bred and Dead ah “Grace and Truth man.” He loved his politics, minus all de hatred and spite. Like his early morning show he gone “Straight Up” to meet His saviour.

MY EULOGY

As ah was saying, when ah dead ah doh want nobody tell lie pon me like ah was ah Saint. So all now so ah writing me own Eulogy, ah writing down all de bad things ah could remember ah did; things dat ah wrote and said about people.

Lord yuh know dat alone is an Epistle. Ah jotting down all de Un-truths, Half-truths and Lies ah might have written about people in my Love Vine Columns. Fuh lasting memory ah must men-shun all de nick-names, NDP Fan-at-ache; NDP Sychopant, NDP Wutless Dutty Dog! Also those references to my Learn-ned helplessness; Jaundiced opinion, my backwardness according to unknown writers in de Papers and on Radio Talk Shows. At my Funeral, all family and close friends will stand outside de church, leaving de Reserved seats foh all my detractors; so as to demonstrate my forgiveness foh all who might have wronged me, and whom I might have wronged.

And when come to reading the Eulogy, ah left dat foh all dem who does always fight up to tek over everybody funeral. But again, dat depend on who first “step outta de frame”. And wid dat is gone ah gone again.
One Love Bassy

Bassy Alexander is a land surveyor, folklorist and social commentator.