PAUL KWIKIRIZA: A Tribute (PART 2)

Just like every other person in A' level Form 6 in the year 2003, Paul and i sat for our UACE - what i call the epoch of academic endeavor in secondary school. Of course one is bound to have all the nerves in the world at such a critical stage of examination but thank God we pulled through. Very soon, long vacation was knocking on our doors and...pheeew! 1 2 3 4 5 6....9 months of uninterrupted, non-stop holiday making! At first glance its such a welcome idea but the prospect of being home for that long aint that cool after all, moreso for a growing teenager with serious "ambitions"! Personally i dreaded being in mama's sight for that long so i sought after various avenues of work.

Its January 2004 and we are seated in this rather sizable room at Ruharo Eye Center(REC)....all nerves. We have an interview before us and i can pick out many familiar faces. Paul is among them and as usual, wearing his characteristic confident self as if certain of a guaranteed offer. The problem is they need only three out of a multitude of people who have showed up here this morning. The rest is history. All i remember is that the following morning i discovered to my great delight i, Paul and a certain friend (Maggie) had been offered jobs!This was more than just a stroke of luck; God must have pulled some strings somewhere!!!!Exciting indeed.

The following 9 months at REC were no doubt memorable and heavily eventful. You can call that a period of transition for the three of us because we were earning our first salary and rubbing shoulders with revered medical practitioners. The burden of expectation hung over us because it seems, having been picked out of a big lot, it was assumed we had quite alot to offer. Paul fit in the "system" so quickly. I would say he was "tailor made" for this job because this is where he always wanted to be: in a hospital. You could tell he loved his work and he really made the rest of us especially me look mediocre! And yet i admired him lots for that. While me and Maggie worked directly with patients in OPD, Paul was stationed somewhere in the Labs meaning he did his work quietly (free from the prying eyes of supervisors) and i should add, so efficiently.

A typical day at work began at 8 Am meaning one had to be up well before. Once in a while , we hiked lifts (in Paul Dad's car)..that is on a "good" day. Most of the time we had to walk to our work place because it was really near our homes. I had never been as close to Paul as i was during this period. We often "hooked" up at lunch breaks and caught up on many things. Paul was immensely passionate about Football. I reckon he could mention the entire Arsenal first IX without blinking an eye. And when it got to our favorite subject (u can bet its music), time seemed to pass a little more quickly because we evidently had alot to talk about in this regard. While my favorite genre was contemporary gospel, Paul loved his music slow and "sentimental". It would never take you long to figure out who his best artistes were - people like Ray Boltz, Don Moen and of course, Ron Kenoly. Ive always thought his favorite song was 'I Pledge Allegiance' done by the legendary Ray Boltz. Even to this day whenever that song is played or sung, my mind races to Paul because in a way, it was his "signature track". This guy loved the Lord and would never trade him for a thing. When you looked "through" him, you could see a fire; a burning zeal to serve God at all costs. No wonder Ray Boltz proved so relevant.

On our way back home every evening, we got to talk more about the personal bit of us. Talk of family, friends, the struggles we were going through, bla bla. In this way, we encouraged ourselves and admonished each other. Having grown up the only male at home, Paul proved to be a worthy brother. At last i wasn't having whining and tantrum-throwing sisters all over me but a male and masculine "dimension" to "things". You can be sure he sharpened me in very many ways. We often told ourselves we were going to make it to university and live out our dreams. On those long walks home, we peeped into the future and allowed ourselves to imagine how our wives and children would be like (but especially WHO our wives would be!!). I got to see a different Paul from probably what the world saw. Here he was....not looking clergy and authoritative anymore but a down-to-earth, pleasant fella...human; with fears and expectations just like the rest of us. I should also peharps mention he knew the value of saving money. While i was prolific at spending my obviously meager "salary", Paul had a more cautious approach. He would save his money and spend it all once by purchasing something tangible. As you can see, i definitely had a lot to learn from this exceptional soul!!