A Man of Honour
Eldred Durosimi Jones is no more.
He left our world sooner
Than our minds could register
Calmly departing as he had lived.
In the quietness of emptiness,
He faded away to remain
Remembered in our grateful hearts
And in those generations to come.
For all the joys he had once brought us,
Growing the bounds of our intellect;
Freely sharing love unselfishly
With family, friends and students all,
We in homage to his memory
Raise a fitting epitaph reading
‘There never was one in recent times
Of such polish, honour and renown.’
He came to fame in short and quick steps
Through Fourah Bay, their Durham and Oxford.
Entry won to those learning centres
Aided his rise on to heights of knowledge,
Few before him could ever have reached
Leaving school in the hard olden days.
Influenced not by success or power
He sat atop his own field, with ease.
Softly clothed in wisdom’s modesty,
As Fourah Bay’s principled Principal.
He enforced discipline and standards high,
Yet much loved and acclaimed the very best.
With such skill, he was bound to excel
Beyond Mount Aureol’s crowning years.
Failing sight, failed to blur others view
Of his rank in the literary arts.
He was a man with talent unmatched;
A mind fertile, spirit undaunted.
So in time, awards piled with praise
Though for most no honour could reward.
For much of his life he served for love
And for a time, was hero unsung,
Noisesome praise to him mattered the least
His marks are clear on works in demand.
Literature from Africa’s pool
Of writing talents who seek his hand
Volumes of writings from authors new
Which await his valued endorsement.
He’s been expert in Literature varied
Editing, reviewing works by greats.
They were unknown before he groomed them
They’ve now to the heights of greatness soared.
Success like those of talents he’d nursed
Have been to him a source of pride.
What pledge, what commitment drives a man
Who in his youth was a printer’s aide,
He knew since then he must work for change,
In a world he found of chances uneven.
Self-improvement are goals he pursued
That was what drove this man of honour.
That enduring commitment pervaded
Every essence of his being; it showed.
H helped those denied a chance to rise
Above their state at birth or of life.
He oft caused detriment to himself
But repeats this mission without thanks.
Kindness after kindness self-hurting,
He and his spouse together giving.
Serving together, grumbling never,
Risks from ingratitude accepted.
His love for work, his sense of duty
Transcends his need for material gain.
Many he knew fled to lands afar
Distancing self from country and kin.
They chased fame wherever they saw it
But never in them did they find peace.
He had stayed home literary critiquing,
Teaching those who to his fountain flocked.
Attractions discarded from sources
However prestigious they sounded.
To build his homeland his only goal
Fixing the rut where he found the need.
His work and name spread to lands distant
Till fame found him in his mountain home.
Creative in mind, large in spirit
None he sent away who needed help.
We may ask why solar stars implode
Belching out huge lightning streams of fire
To die; their place black holes, soon appear,
While human stars after labour, fade
In peace beyond the ether of dreams.
Ask not now of life in mystery’s spheres
Think now of how to fill the huge gap
Of one who till death was much revered.
There’s little more to add to a life
So glittering in its achievements,
Outstanding in its humanity
Except to mention the institute;
The ‘Eldred Jones’ Knowledge Aid’
He founded on his retirement.
With a Board of scholars distinguished,
It is poised to grow, spreading knowledge
In a lasting memorial of pride
To a man of honour.
By Prof Kosonike Koso-Thomas
Copyright © 2020 Politico Online
