It was late in 88 when I first met Emon in Bishopsgate .
Its no me backwards he said . Emon was just like that .
The hard times had brought us together .
I had been singing in a pub on evening when a fight broke out . Emon sided with me just before the knives came out . We got out as the police moved in .
We watched as the squad cars arrived one after the other . Streams of London Bobbys poured inside the pub . The police had sealed off all the traffic around the area and cordoned off the street .
I looked at Emon and he at me .
“I liked the stuff you were playing .“
He said .
I reached out and shook his hand .
“Thanks .“
I said .
“Where are you staying ?”
He asked and there was a silence .
As it turned out both of us were Irish and homeless .
“C’mon I know a place where we can get our head down .“
He said .
As we made our way through the streets of London we shared some interesting conversation about our Irish history and how and why we both ended up homeless . Emon had done a few small crimes in Ireland . He had a drink problem and was disowned by his family . Over the years he had made some enemies and as eventually issued an ultimatum by a certain underworld figure who told him to leave the country and never return or he would have to face an execution . Emon left Ireland and had lived rough for many years .
For myself I had come to London to marry a girl I met while she was on holidays . I feel in love and though she had too . She told me her father had loads of money and that he would support my music career . She convinced me that I had a great future with my songs in the UK .
Like a fool I actually believed her . My family and friends tried to stop me from leaving but I never listened to them . Maybe I was being selfish but needless to say I left on bad terms . I sold out all those people who did love me for someone I had only just met . Young and confused I landed in London with my guitar and a overnight bag . I though it strange that she wasn’t there to meet me at the airport . What followed was even more strange . I was robbed outside the airport . I got lost on the streets and had no friends or family to help me out . I had managed to do a few gigs around the place . It basically gave me money for food . Up until the night I met Emon I had been sleeping rough on the streets .
The most intriguing fact about Emon was he came from the same village in Ireland as myself . Its amazing that in a city of over ten million people how two people from the same Irish village could meet .
By the end of the conversation we came to a place called Lambeth Walk .
It was quiet on the street and I followed Emon through a doorway of a shop .
The shop was a Chinese take away food spot and Emon spoke to the owner who pointed upstairs . They shook hands and Emon returned and said.
“Ok . Heres the deal . We can stay here for a week . But we have to help out in the kitchen . We’ll get some food as well . Does that sound ok to you “ “
“Ok . That’s fine . ”
I said .
By the end of the night I had got to know Emon and we got along very well .
We were both poor and alone in the big city . So we had a lot in common .
We were like brothers and clicked from the first moment we met .
In a city were friends are hard to find both of us had found a sense of family well being and hope . The streets of London looked different now . Every day had a new meaning because it almost began to feel like home . Life had a purpose now and we never felt so ashamed of who we were .
I was lucky enough to get a job as a storeman in Dalston . I worked in the despatch area of a warehouse . At night I still did the some gigs when ever I could get in some place . There was always fights . Its part of the territory when you’re doing live gigs in pubs around London . Emon was always there when I played . He always made sure my back was covered . Emon could look after himself and was respected by a few around town .
I was happy that Emon was back doing some construction work again .
For when he wasn’t on the construction site he was on a drinking binge .
But these days he wasn’t on the tear as often .
We both had separate lives but a great friendship . Our network of connections and friends grew all the time . London can be like that . You can go out and make hundreds of acquaintances, but good friends are very hard to find .
In London there were always situations that would develop that required more than normal solutions .
One night I was at home alone when the phone rang .
It was Emon and he was crying a little . I wasn’t quite ready for what Emon was about to tell me .
I answered the phone
“Hello .“
“Is that you Emon ?“
He answered through his tears ,
“I’m in the Guys hospital . I’m told I’ve got cancer . They have to operate immediately . I don’t think I have long to live .“
I almost collapsed on the spot .
I was lost for words . In the past Emon was always able to find the answer to problems . Now it was my turn to find the right thing to say .
I tried to sound confident and in control and said .
“It’s ok . You’ll get through this Emon . Trust me . It will be all right .“
“I’ll ring you tomorrow .“
“I’m coming over to the hospital .“
I said .
He hung up the phone .
When I got to the hospital to see Emon he was in the theatre .
After the operation I was told it was an open and shut case with no chance of survival .
A week later he left this world . It was May 1989 when he died .
I wasn’t able to contact his family and I don’t really know if they would have even cared anyway . At his funeral I had a sense that angels were guarding his coffin and uncanny as it was three other people emerged and they assisted me to carry his coffin from the church to the hearse .
There were about one hundred people there at his funeral .
Some of them I knew and others who I had never seen before .
There is a lot more I could say about him and how he became the brother that I never had . I tried to write it down in a poem and then I wrote a song that I called friends and brothers .
I can’t sing it to you but here are the lyrics .
Friends And Brothers ( Song For Emon )
Verse
In my memory you will always live on ,
like a eternal melody of our favourite song .
My friend and brother your smile’s always there,
And if you could help me pluck one from a melancholy air .
Chorus
Friends and brothers we were two of a kind
On cold streets in London they’re hard to find .
But somehow we did and then it was gone ,
Like the last call before I wrote you this song .
Verse
I remember the way you’d cheer when I’d sung ,
You’d stand and you’d back me against anyone
You always be there right by my side
So sudden the shock, too soon when you died .
Repeat Chorus
Verse
My memory of you lives on in a song ,
The friendship we had and a bond that was strong.
So I’ll smile for the memory even though you’re gone
And sing for the gladness in a song for Emon .
Repeat Chorus
That is the lyrics of the song I wrote for Irish Emon .
I often think of him still now that he’s gone .
Good friends are hard to find and it was just by chance I found him .
From the Caribbean Sea to Machu Picchu in Peru, and from birds to flowers and butterflies, Reflections and Treasured Wonders offers a collection of images gathered from around the world.
In "A Touch of Your Presence" are words that would inspire, encourage and strengthen one's soul when faced with challenges and difficulties and to know the awesomeness of God's power.
