DEAR readers, please pardon me but my disturbed fingertips are trembling with pain, grief and disgust as I’m trying my level best to gather few ounces of strength and courage, tickling the keyboard ivories in my pursuit to ink a dignified tribute for a departed media colleague, well known socialite Uapingena Ngava, famously known as Uapi in social circles.
Paddling on the name of a football legend comes with a load of heavy expectations, but now-retired African Stars Football Club flying winger Edison Muheua was unfazed, so to speak.
Born in the harbour town of Walvis Bay on the banks of the giant Atlantic Ocean in 1966, young Kephas Costa Lucas was just like many other Pikininis his age in the neighbourhood – football crazy. He would play football at the slightest provocation; be it in the streets, on his way to school, in the dunes, or at any other available piece of open space.
A proud protégé of the revered Duinesig Primary School, sandwiched between the Atlantic Ocean and the iconic Namib Desert dunes in Walvis Bay’s Kuisebmond, Wycliff Mathou ‘Fire’ Kambonde is a former Blue Waters and Jomo Cosmos FC hard-tackling defender, and also a staunch supporter of Soweto giants Kaizer Chiefs.
Although it’s extremely hard to swallow, let alone digest, it is common knowledge that death and grief are hourly universal experiences that many families, friends and acquaintances should get used to accepting that this world has not been cut out as our permanent habitat.
When former Beatles frontman Paul McCartney penned the lyrics of the hit song ‘Blue Bird’, the iconic Liverpudlian must have had former Blue Waters Football Club’s tough-tackling defensive midfielder Magnus Vanoi Amadhila in mind.
To many, he was just known as the easy-going bearded socialite and resolute freedom fighter but in real life, Niko Bessinger was a Jack of all trades.
Unlike in the modern game where they are nowadays respectfully classified as kit managers, back in the day, kit-men were looked down upon and those who dared have the guts to assume the duty of kit-man, were the laughing stock of many.
The author came to know Atanasius ‘Steps’ Nickel up close during our musical escapades in the beautiful Copper Town of Tsumeb back in the day, and we became close buddies to the extent that our friendship blossomed into brotherhood over the years.
There is an old saying that death is a weird part of life but truth be told, without death, human beings cannot appreciate life to the fullest. Nonetheless, death is the most painful experience in life and it’s never going to be easy to bid farewell to our loved ones, notably when that goodbye is for good.