FOR A FRIEND I ONCE KNEW

Thabo Mankge was a good friend of mine, more like a street mate and a brother I grew up with him on the streets of my hometown Daveyton. Thabo was a good friend to everyone I can't imagine him having enemies for he was a very friendly crazey and funny person who was loved by everyone he knew and those who knew him. Thabo Mankge killed himself on Tuesday March the 13th of 2012 a year which was about taking controll and charge of your life but unfortunately life tends to take control of us and we are never prepared for the unforeseen circumstances that may come our way and sometimes we never even have the stregnth to deal with such hardships. Thabo Mankge went to the University of Johannesburg where he passed with flying colours and worked for Cell C, SARS, Group Five and his latestcompany was B1sa pty. ltd. So as you can see Thabo was very smart, prosperous and successful but he somehow for some reason was not satisfied with what he had or what he was doing. His last words were mentioned through a mutual friend which were "Life is such a mess" but he didn't really listen to him. Word is Thabo no longer saw what he was living for and he there decided to end his life just like that. Nobody really knows why he killed himself, his facebook wall is full of endless messages of sympathy, empathy, regrets and unanwsered questions. Nobody ever thought that a happy free spirited person with a great heart would actually kill himself and not consider the people he would leave behind. I have to admit that I really feel bad because I was hardly there or around to notice anything maybe if I had been there he would have still been alive today. I remember seing him before going our seperate ways to hit the same party, he was happy and funny even though he was drunk but he was being his usual self. In the mist of all of that I could sense some uneasyness about him, like he had given up on hope or someting I don't know I felt like that, that day, and that was in 2011 the 1st of January. I didn't pay much attention I was just looking forward to celebrating the knew year with everyone else. I guess it was becaue it was then when I saw him and I remembered his words when we used to fellowship togather with other young people when he said "Father if you don't come through for me this time I will go my own way". And it was at that moment I realised that I was not alone in my own disappointments of life that would make me go astray and to that my spirit was lifted , it was those very same words that stayed with me I don't anyone else actually knew and understood what he was saying or talking about. As time went on he dissappeared and the fellowship eventually broke up due to church politics and from there I would see him once in a while but due to being away from home often I hardly saw him much. The funeral was a great turn out which filled almost a quater of our street with mostly young people who were all heartbroken as Thabo touched lives, he also requested that a block party be done for him to celebrate his life of which I could not attend. "To you Thabo Mankge I say you were a good friend and a good brother, we will always love you and miss you. I hope you have found what you were looking for, as I become heartbroken all over again now as I write to you, and just thinking how we all going to move on from this. Rest in peace". 

Final goodbyes for Whitney Houston

Close friends and family including invited celebrity guests gathered at Whitney Houston's hometown in Newark New Jersey Baptist Church to honour and say their last goodbyes to their legend and icon Whitney Houston who passed away on 11 February 2012 in the Beverly Hills Hotel in California, she was found in a bath of water, cause to her death is still unknown.
Cissie Houston, mother of Whitney made a good selfless decision to allow her daugter to be hounered in her own hometown where she was born and raised and where she first showed off her singing talent at her church choir with her mother Cissie, her godmother Arither Franklin and her famous gospel singer cousin Dion Warwick. Mother Cissie allowed the media to broadcast a four hour funeral and church service to the locals, fans and the rest of the world who were not invited to the funeral as the streets were also blocked and cleared from the people just to avoid a hollywood scene. Bobby Brown who was Whitney Houston's lover for fifteen years of marriage which eventually ended in 2007 due to domestic and substance abuse, also showed up at the funeral of his ex wife but immediately left ten miniuts after the start of the funeral due to mistreatment of security who moved him and his apparent entourage three times, and at this Bobby got up and kissed his wifes caskit and walked with his children who were hurt by the fact that they could not say goodbye to their once upon a time step mother Whitney. Cousin Dion was the main MC for the rest of the main service,respected public figures like producer,writer and Pastor TD Jakes; Playwright, writer, producer, director and actor Tyler Perry; Whitney's mentor Clive Davis, Rev. Marvin Winans, and Houston's co actor Kevin Costner from the movie of "The Body Gaurd" were all there to testify about Whitney Houston. Many of the stars such as the likes of Alicia Keys who dedicated the song "send me an angel" to Houston; Stevie Wonder rewrote the lyrica to "Robin in the sky", the Winans family which included gospel singers Bebe & Cece, Carvin, and Marvin sang near to the end of the service, R Kelly sang one of Houston last releases "I Look To You", and Donni Mclurkin sang "Stand" which was requested by the family. Other guests who were among the three hundred mouners included media guru Oprah Winfrey, actor Forest Whitater and singers Mariah Carey, Mary J Blige, Dian Sawyer, Jennifer Hudson as well as Brandy and her younger brother Houston's once upon lover and close friend RayJ Norwood. Marvin Winans said that it was good of Cissie Houston to invite the whole world to church and preached a profound message about how being a child God is not boring and that we must not lose heart when it comes to God because of worldly circumstances. At the end of the service after all the testimonials, the laughter, and preaching; raw emotions of Whitney Houston's funeral came down to that one moment, her voice. As she was carried in her gold and silver casket by navy officers her ultimate hit song "I will always love you" was playing and many including myself were once again heartbroken and hopeless as we were once again hit by the reality that Whiney Houston is no longer with us.

A Star gone too soon

Another Star, another legend has fallen and gone too soon. Multi grammy award winning gospel to RnB singer Whitney Houston was found dead at the Beverely Hills Hotel in Los Angeles right after performing a preconcert with the likes of Kenny Lattimore and rehersals with Brandy among others for the Grammys and in honor of her mentor Clive who discovered her as a young singer at her home church in Newark New Jersey. She has acted major roles in great movie hits such as "The Bodygaurd" which featured her greatest sound track "I will always love you", the movie "Waiting to Exhale" with another great sound track "Count on me" and "Exhale"as well the her last movie "The Preacher's Wife". Whitney Houston's latest movie is "Sparkle" which was inspired by "The Supremes" of 1963, the movie will hit cinemas in August 2012. Former President Nelson Mandela also sent his condolences to her family as he remebers Whitney when she once came to South Africa to sing for him back in 1994 when South Africa became a Demaocratic country. Whitney had just made a good come back in 2009 after having overcome and recovered from her drug use and domestic abuse from her former husband Bobby Brown. She leaves behind many of those who dearly loved her including her mother gospel singer Cissie Houston, and her one and only daughter from Bobby Brown, Bobbi Kristina Houston Brown as well as a whole entourage that was fully behind her. The Grammy awards quickly turned into a great tribute for her where despite all the excitement of the event many mixed emotions were unleashed when Jennifer Hudson, Robin Thick among others did a tribute songs for her; even hiphop artist LL Cool J who was the host for the grammys started the ceremony with a prayer in honor of Houston who was very much known as a child of God as she was never ashamed to express it to anyone she met. Causes to her death however are still unknown as police and doctors still investigate the matter, an autoptopcy has therefore been done however. It was truelly a great shock for many including myself as many of us grew up listening to her music she will be dearly missed and always loved. Rest in peace Whitney Houston we will always love you and remember you for all your faith love and stregnth as well as you "THE VOICE".

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