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Akif
Franklyn’s passing reminded everyone that friends,
family and community is the greatest asset in life.
Photo courtesy Marjorie Boothman
By
Michelle Loubon
“A
grandmother’s love is better than all the blankets
in the world.”
Marjorie Boothman shared this sweet sentiment her grandson
Akif Franklyn had written in a birthday card to her.
But it wasn’t at a tea party.
Instead, Akif’s loved ones had gathered to pay tribute
to his memory at All Saints Church, Marli Street, Newtown.
Akif, which means “focused,” died fighting Hodgekins
Lymphona cancer on September 4. His parents—Kenny and
Marva—were abroad, but Akif’s relatives, including
the Holders, Boothmans and Carballos gathered to pay tribute.
They were joined by scores of his friends from Bishop Anstey
High and St James Secondary schools. Marva’s dear friends,
including Debra Ayoung from the US Embassy, were also present.
As Boothman, 82, continued painting a portrait of the “second
life that grandchildren (especially Akif) had given to you,”
many a grandmother was moved to tears. The congregation
clung to every word.
At the lectern, she shared tidbits on “grandma’s
day.”
“Akif
always wanted to raid the refrigerator. He just loved to
eat. Sandwich...roti. He had a good appetite. He was a loving
child.”
She also told of his abiding love for his brother, Madani.
The tête-à-tête shifted to Akif’s
sickness. Wincing, she recounted how he had told her about
the excruciating pains racking his body.
“Granny,
I am in so much pain.”
She wanted to see him.
Akif begged her. “Don’t come. I don’t want
you to see me like this.”
The request hurt. A grandmother’s intuition told her
to honour it. But the loss was unbearable.
The reality cut. “Akif is not going to come back. He
went out with the wind.” Tears tumbled. She had more
to say but couldn’t.
Seniors mourn Akif
Prior to other tributes, Canon Claude Berkley exhorted the
congregation to trust in God. “Without God we are nothing.
Are we loving God? Are we loving our fellowmen?” he
asked. “Let Akif’s life not be in vain.”
Class teacher Damara Clarke Marshall remembered Akif’s
creative streak. She made reference to a poem in the programme.
“I
love the rain a lot. I like bathing in it. It keeps me nice
and cool.”.
His ad on energy drinks hit home. “Maybe, Akif knew
something about it that we didn’t. Soon the market
was flooded with energy drinks for teenagers.”
She read a poem the staff from Bishop's had sent.
An excerpt said, “Don’t grieve for me, for now
I’m free/I’m following the path God laid for me.
I took his hand when I heard him call.”
Young ones mourn Akif
His friends and classmates from Bishop Anstey dedicated
singer Mariah Carey’s Hero to him. Misty-eyed, they
took their seats.
After the service, his friends Fayola King Lawrence and
Crystal Carmichael shared their last memories—a beautiful
blend of humour and joie-de-vivre.
Lawrence said, “He was at a birthday party. He had
a plaster over his eye. He was sick. When we asked, he said:
“I got shot on the block.”
Carmichael added that she, Akif and Madani had splashed
around Hilton Trinidad’s pool together. “We had
so much fun. Now he’s gone,” she mused.
Filing out onto the Kirk’s well-manicured lawns, Akif’s
cross-section of friends must have thought of poet Christina
Rosetti’s Remember—Remember me when I am gone
away/Gone far away into the silent land.”
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