Death, in most cases makes an announcement before visiting a family, but the language in which the announcement is made is either too complicated for our understanding or we ignore and fail to listen to it. But again, what will it save listening to death that has already made a decision to visit?
I usually tell young people that “When your Moses has decided to cross the Red sea, there is absolutely nothing you or anyone can do about it – the war-cry and cluttering of the horse-hooves from the Egyptian side would only send him deep to the sea, so just relax and let Musa cross “
This, interpretatively mean that when the time is ripe for anything, bad or good it would happen no matter what measures you employ to stop it. The best you can do is to accept and cross with dignity. If it crosses to the best side, smile ; If it crosses to the worst , wipe your tears and brave it on.
I’m trying to follow Ghanian Player Christian Atsu’s last moments on earth and am of the opinion that his Moses had already made a decision to cross the Red sea and it just had to happen.
On 5th February 2023 at exactly 10:34 AM Türkiye time (7:34 AM in Ghana) Christian Atsu’s twin sister Christiana Twasam also known as ‘Atsupie’ called him via Whatsapp.
Atsu thought she was calling concerning a playground project at a Children’s Center in Ada Fadoah (Ghana) that he promised to Fund during December holiday and Atsupie was his point person.
That wasn’t the case for the call though. His sister had a dream the night before , and in that dream, her brother Atsu had been arrested in Türkiye and the villagers were going to their home to submit their sympathy.
In her dream, the family had selected her to go and help negotiate for his release but didn’t know the jail or his house to start with. When she told, Atsu, he laughed over it and told her ” .. siz you are too concerned about me and it has gotten into your head ; nothing is wrong”
He quickly brushed aside the dream and told his sister that he would send the money for the playground project before the end of the week and also revealed to her that he would be travelling to Paris that very evening after their game with Kasimpasa to connect with his wife and children.
He told the sister that because he wasn’t drawn in the starting 11 in the Hatayaspor against Kasimpasa game , he won’t be too exhausted to travel.
On the same day at around 12:00 PM one hour before their match with Kasimpasa at Hatay Stadyumu , Hatay city, Turkey, his wife Marie-Claire Rupio called to wish him the best in their match. The kids also said hi to him.
He confirmed to his wife that he had already booked a flight to Paris and would fly out of Hatay that same day in the evening ; that is 5th February 2023 . He said he would be with them the following day.
After their game, at around 16:00 UTC, his sister Atsupie who was following the match through a livescore site called to congratulate him for his last minute goal (97th) after being played as a substitute in the 87th minute.
Atsu revealed to the Sister that he won’t be travelling that evening as planned and had cancelled his flight to Paris to celebrate the goal with the team mates. He had rescheduled the flight to the following morning.
His sister asked whether it was necessary to cancel the flight only to celebrate a goal and he replied ” siz this goal mean a lot to me and my football life here in Türkiye…” It turned out to be true, it was his last goal in life and last goal in Turkey.
His wife Marie-Claire was equally not pleased with his decision to reschedule the flight but advised him that because they’d be having a small party with friends and it might go till late, he should just pack his things, leave the house and consider spending at a hotel next to the airport so that the next morning he won’t find it hard making it to the airport .
Atsu confirmed that evening to the wife that he had left the house for the party and would be making an arrangement for a room near the airport, and not going back to the house . He had his luggage in the car which belonged to Savut.
After this small party at around 11:00 PM, Hatayspor’s sporting director Taner Savut who lived with Atsu in the same building and was to drive him to where he would spend the night convinced him to go back and spend at his house.
Savut is said to have promised to drive him to the airport early the next morning in case he had no one to do so. Savut has also been missing since the 6th Feb earthquake .
His wife was upset with his decision to go back to the house but told him that so long as he would be okay with the morning rush then no worries. According to the wife, he wasn’t so good in time-keeping especially in the morning.
That same night, his twin sister Twasam had yet another dream about him but chose not to share with him but with another sibling. In this dream, Atsu went back home (Ghana) but couldn’t speak to any of them, he had gone dumb. Many people had come to see him but he was just silent.
When the news about February 6, 2023 7.8 magnitude earthquake broke, they never imagined Atsu would be caught in it. Some of his team mates thought he had spent in a hotel as earlier planned while others thought it happened when he had already left the house.
His phone had managed to stay on till yesterday ; his travelling bags were found few meters from where his decaying body was found. His bedroom clock kept tickling in the rubbles and two pairs of his shoes and Hatayaspor track suit also found near him –
Just as his sister Atsupie had dreamt, he got ‘arrested’ in the rubbles and was flown home yesterday when he couldn’t speak. He turned out to be among the tens of thousands victims of the devastating earthquake in southern Turkey and northern Syria.
May Christian Atsu’s soul rest in eternal peace.
Credit: Emmanuel Ackah Rooney.
