Abijah’s son laid to rest

They went through great lengths to celebrate his fun loving life, heralding his love for fishing, drama, and an entrepreneurial spirit but no one could remove the dark cloud – Ravi Elvis Abbey’s suicide. The shock, confusion, and utter dismay canopied the St George’s Cathedral Tuesday.

Ravi’s “adventurous spirit” was tamed permanently when he inexplicably put his father’s licensed .38 revolver to his head and pulled the trigger shortly after 8 p.m. on August 30 at his home in Upper New Montrose just after he was asked by his father to do some household chores.{{more}}

The 18-year-old student of Bishop’s College, son of former Calypso Monarch Elvis “Abbijah” Abbey will no longer “light up” any place, but rather leave lingering thoughts in the minds of those who loved him of how he was able to do this without any warning signs to them.

Fellow students sent him off into his unattractive sunset with the words “so long classmate, so long friend”, while another, young pan prodigy Rodney Small made his tenor pan speak through the stream of tears that constantly flowed from his eyes during his rendition of “How Great Thou Art” and “Hallelujah Anyhow.”

However, it is the sermon by Rev. Victor Job that should eternally resonate with the audience, especially the young people. They should remember that although they are under varying levels of pressure spanning from strained parental relationships, peer pressure, and the mounting strain of academic expectations that faith in God enables us to stand against anything.

Never must they forget that the way in which they deal with problems will determine what they will make of their lives. Added to that, he said that problems which many young people face, they bring on themselves and did not originate with other people. “There is too much disobedience,” he said insinuating that young people need to allow themselves to be guided more by people who are more mature.