The Hard Truth The Warrior’s Widow says . . . . . Asante Sana! Thank You!

You came from everywhere. From Shreveport, New Orleans, all points in between, across the nation, far and near, you came!

When the unbelievable news hit that a mighty warrior had fallen in the midst of battle, it was sudden, shocking and surreal. Somehow it just did NOT MATCH! Kojo Livingston? Gone from this life? Yes, it was painfully true, but as the community attempted to grasp and grieve this great loss, something else began to churn. A flood, one might say. Oh, not from breached levees or swollen rivers, but from broken hearts over a Warrior General in the Army dedicated to the uplift of a nation of black people and the loved ones he left behind. You see, in spite of your own personal pain and loss, your own tears and questions, you flooded and poured a multiplicity of profound acts of love, kindness and generosity toward this Livingston family.

I will never, ever be able to convey, express or explain how truly grateful my family and I are to God and to this great community for the outpouring of love and compassion you have given and still giving during this very difficult and unexpected loss of my husband, my children’s father, the “grand dude’s” G baba, a son & brother in law and “Jimmy” to his aunts, uncles and cousins. Somehow saying thank you seems so inadequate, so mundane, so ordinary. Yet, it is honestly and truly the place from which I come. I’m just deficient in expressing how much.

Thank you for your words of comfort, for your hugs, your kisses, your touch and your tears. For the many, many prayers, your calls and cards, your texts, the facebook messages, your ministry of presence, your incredibly generous financial resources; the feast you provided at the house and the church; your service and creativity; your time and talents. Did I say your love? That’s ok, I’ll say it again, YOUR LOVE!!!

I DARE NOT begin to try to list the countless names of groups, churches, organizations, businesses, communities, activists, pastors, politicians and just ordinary, everyday people who aided and abetted in this extraordinary act of love. All I can say is this, you know WHO you are, you know WHAT you did and you know HOW&WHY you did it. Mighty race, Community, you had the Seven Principles of Kwanzaa in full throttle! I know Kojo was/is proud. I can hear him now saying, “look at my people”! Oh how he LOVED you so! I only ask that we not wait for another soldier to fall on the battlefield to manifest this type of agape love and unity among us, but to always keep this thought in mind; to honor the legacy of James Kojo Livingston is to continue to do the work of love and liberation everyday of your life. So Whatcha gonna do? You gonna keep this going! Again we say, Asante Sana, Asante Sana, Asante Sana, Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!

From Shannon, Malaika, Shaddai, Jamaal, Isaiah (the “grand dude”) and all family members of the Warrior, James Kojo Livingston

This article originally published in the October 14, 2013 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.