I was not born when Muhammad Ali was at the height of his career. I think I was just 2 months old before his last fight. So all I knew about him was what my dad told me about him. How he had fought the greats of his era and won.
I remember hearing about the rumble in the jungle and the thrilla in Manila from him as a kid every so often. What I do know is that on June 3rd, 2016 Muhammad Ali left our realm to return to our maker, he is no longer bound to the physical world but his memory will live on.
He will live on in every fighter that goes into the ring, he will live on in every person who is standing up for their beliefs, he lives on for all those battling Parkinson disease or any illness.
Muhammad Ali has achieved immortality in a way that few sportsmen can, he was born knowing racism and a man of the civil rights era who would come to represent those who felt they were forgotten.
He is known for skill in the ring not just because of the power of his punch but because he made the ring his dance floor where he put on many a time the greatest shows on Earth.
I know that when he decided not to enlist during the Vietnam war he was vilified but he stood by his principles and would loose his belt only to regain it more than three years later. Muhammad Ali was known as a boxer but left this Earth as so much more.
That’s why “the greatest” isn’t gone he lives in every person that’s ever dreamed of getting into the ring, he represents all those who are pressured to break to remind us to stood tall, and inspires all of those fighting the good fight against illness in all its forms as long as he inspires he will never die and can never be forgotten.
So as all those of the Muslim faith begin Ramadan it’s only fitting that “the greatest” leave us on this plane for the next as you reflect on the spirit let us welcome Muhammad Ali to his true home for the next journey.