“If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me – Psalm 139:9-10.”
So reads a post by Pius Adesanmi the day before he died. The professor is smiling at the camera, holding his passport.
“If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me – Psalm 139:9-10”
He was one of more than 150 victims who died in the Ethiopia Airlines crash in March.
“He worked tirelessly to build the Institute of African Studies, to share his boundless passion for African literature and to connect with and support students,” said Pauline Rankin, dean of the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences at Carleton University. “He was a scholar and teacher of the highest caliber who leaves a deep imprint on Carleton.”
Adesanmi posted several other faith-based posts on his Facebook, including a personal prophecy
“The day after… I’ve written so many “eniyan l’aso mi” updates after moments like this. I’d sound like a broken record deploying that trope yet again. So, I am just going to say thank you for making my day memorable yesterday. Like I said, this birthday holds a special significance because I wasn’t meant to see it. Nearly a year later, I still wake up in the dead of night, shivering and shaking because of nightmares, of reliving the scene that nearly took me, of remembering …”
“This birthday thing! Thanking God for the gift of a life spared to see another year! Thanking God for the gift of people in my life! “
“Nigeria was once good walahi. Your secondary school experience was incomplete without periodic distribution of free copies of this blue Gideons international pocket Bible. Given out every term to Christian and Muslim students without wahala. Memories of Titcombe College.. “
“Baba God,
Your son remains loyal sir.
Mukulu muke ma jo, f’Olorun mi.”
“God is great! Back at work for the first time today since Nigeria’s deadly roads nearly claimed me on July 17th, 2018. This office feels strange. This desk feels strange. Somehow, God said that a living soul will return to occupy them. This public space feels strange. Somehow, God said that a living soul will return to it. Not that unconscious, near-dead, damaged body sprawled on grass and dirt in the middle of nowhere between Ogbomoso and Oyo. The proverbial one thousand …”
Adesanmi was awarded the Penguin Prize for African Writing in nonfiction in 2010 for a collection of essays titled, “You’re Not a Country, Africa!”
Sunday’s crash, minutes after takeoff from Addis Ababa for a flight to Nairobi, inflicted a particularly heavy toll on the United Nations, which has large offices in both cities, according to Reuters. The 157 victims, including 149 passengers and eight crew members, came from more than 30 countries, the airline said.
Also among the dead were four Catholic Relief Services employees from Ethiopia. Sara Chalachew, Getnet Alemayehu, Sintayehu Aymeku and Mulusew Alemu were headed to Nairobi for training, their employer said.
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