Femi- A lovely reflection of God’s love.
Life has taken me on a turbulent journey.
Emotionally, I feel deeply wounded.
For the past three weeks, I've received nothing but news of the passing of close allies.
One after another, I've been informed of few deaths,
and the most painful one is that of Femi.
Undoubtedly, he was the youngest of them all.
Just six months ago, we mourned the loss
of a dear colleague on our platform.
So this year began with a consuming grief.
I struggle with words as I reflect on Femi's departure.
For us doctors, are helpless in the face of death.
The weight of mortality undermines our collective intellectual prowess.
Though we claim mastery over countless complexities, and pride ourselves on being repositories of cues, subtleties, and discernment;
we pretend to be all-knowing, all-wise, and exceptionally perceptive, yet we are utterly powerless when it comes to the subject of death.
You don't need to be an Obstetrician to determine a child's expected date of delivery.
Birth dates are often predicted, with some degree of accuracy.
But even in the hands of experienced professionals,
we possess no skill in predicting the expected date of one's passing.
If it was omitted by the Obstetricians, the Paediatricians are clueless,
It remains a mystery to the Geriatricians, while others including the family physicians are frankly, simply and expectedly hapless.
Collectively, doctors are hopeless on the subject of death.
Any possible confounding hypothesis of reversing death resides nowhere - even within the premise of an ivory tower.
We strive so much to prevent death, we can review the process of dying, we can expatiate on post mortem analyses but could never halt or prevent the ultimate sequelae.
We are severely limited in keeping anyone alive beyond the gates of death.
We ultimately accept defeat, withdraw into our shells - recoup and try to prevent a repeat of the process.
Yet, I have no less respect for the noble profession from where Femi exited. He honourably paid his dues.
Femi and I shared a common faith and believed in the sovereignty of God,
the mortality of humankind,
and the love of God for humanity, which brings salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.
We connected on this level,
since his days at Loveward Fellowship during our time on campus, where he served as a leader.
I was never a member of Loveward, regardless, he would connect with anyone believing that any human being created in God’s image is deserving of love.
You don't have to be his best friend to experience the love in his own “Loveworld”
The last time he spoke with me was when he called me on my birthday to express his kind wishes, prayers and pleasantries.
We also exchanged views on secular matters such as the “illegality of paying ransom to kidnappers.”
He would send a private message out of discretion to express his views as he deemed appropriate.
It is an established fact that we are all imperfect creatures before the Lord God, our maker, the One who holds our every breath.
In this spirit of grace, I want us to kindly remember him.
Apologies to those who do not share this belief but to those who understand,
I need not overstate the salient truth.
The nightmare has transformed into a harsh reality, but the ultimate truth confronting us is the matter of life and death.
That we all - are on the cue to eternity, and the crucial question and speculation lingers; who is next and what lies ahead when we bid the world a farewell ?
Of all my options of content and context of this elegy,
I have written all of the above to honour what Femi believed in and shared.
He desired that we all make peace with God-our maker sooner than later by surrendering to His supremacy and His majesty.
On this note, I humbly rest my case. Adieu Femi.
May your gentle soul rest in peace. God be with you till we meet again.
Sola Olulope Medilag Class 93 plus 1(medical school classmate)