The Soul Of A Butterfly (18 page)

working

FOR GOD

I KNOW THAT
I have lived a blessed life. I have nine beautiful children and six grandchildren. I have a loving wife and a beautiful home surrounded by peace and nature. God has been good to me, and I wouldn’t change anything that has happened to me. I have learned something from it all. I’m not as physically healthy as I once was, but in many ways I’m a lot stronger now. In order to be truly spiritual, we have to cast aside our material desires and our physical image of ourselves.

A Hindu poet once said, “If the angels who are entirely spiritual could fulfill the purpose of creation, God would have not created man.”

I have learned that it is through tragedies that we grow. The losses that we experience, the illnesses that we face, and the pain and sorrow we sometimes feel enable us to achieve our highest and greatest purpose in life, which is spiritual growth.

My greatest accomplishments in life were achieved outside the ring, and my greatest privilege in life was becoming a messenger of peace and love. Because there is nothing as great as working for God.

the road

TO HEAVEN

A few weeks ago my dad and I were at his house watching old Elvis Presley movies together. Dad is a big fan of Elvis, and in the middle of the movie, Dad reminded me that Elvis had given him a white jeweled robe back in the mid-seventies. It was Saturday afternoon and Lonnie was at one of Asaad’s ball games, so it was just the two of us spending the afternoon together. After the movie ended, my dad asked me to drive him to the bookstore in Benton Harbor so he could buy some Bibles and Qurans for a project that he has been working on.

As we were driving down the highway we noticed an elderly black man standing on the corner of the street with a Bible in his hand. We also noticed that he had his thumb up, so we turned around and picked him up. When the man got into the car he told us his name. We will call him Ernie for privacy reasons.

Ernie told us that he just got out of church and asked if we could drop him off a few miles up the road, then he said he would be able to take a cab the rest of the way home. I told Ernie that we would not mind driving him home, but he said he did not want to take us out of our way.

At this point Ernie still had not realized who my father was. When we came to a stop light my dad turned around so that Ernie could see his face. Then Dad said, “We are on our way to the bookstore to buy some Bibles and Qurans, so it won’t be out of our way.”

Now Ernie recognized my father and said, “Muhammad Ali, well isn’t that something!” He went on to say, “Thank you so much for this ride. When we get to my house I have three Bibles I can give you for free.”

My father replied, “Thank you, but we’ll pay you for them.” But Ernie said that he wanted to give them to him to repay him for the ride. My dad asked him what he did for a living.

Ernie told us that he had recently suffered a stroke and that he had had to retire from his job of more than twenty years. My dad then asked Ernie how much money he had in his pocket; Ernie told him about ten dollars.

My father looked at me with wide eyes, leaned over and whispered, “How much money do you have in your purse?” I told him that I would have to go to an ATM to get some cash. Dad asked me to take out as much as I could, so I did. When I got back into the car Ernie and my dad were talking and laughing together like old friends. I handed the money to my father and he turned to Ernie and extended his hand with the money in it.

Ernie looked at the money and asked, “What’s this for?”

My dad told him, “It’s for you.”

Ernie shook his head and exclaimed, “No, no, no, there won’t be any of that going on here!”

My dad insisted, “Take the money; I want you to have it! It’s for the Bibles that you’re going to give me.”

But Ernie still would not take it. He said that it was way too much money for three Bibles and that he wanted to give them to Dad, not sell them to him.

Then my dad said, “Take the money. I want to help you.” Still Ernie said no.

Dad didn’t know what else to do, so he tossed the money into the back seat next to Ernie and said, “You have to take it now!”

Ernie gathered up the cash and said with the most gentle voice, “Mr. Ali, I know that you are very famous and influential, but you can’t make a person do something if they don’t want to. Even though your intentions are good, I still don’t want to take the money.” I could see that my father was impressed, but at the same time a little confused. He was so used to people asking him for money before he even had a chance to offer it to them. He seemed at a loss for words.

Then, finally, looking at Ernie with pleading eyes he said, “Take the money, man, I’m trying to get into heaven!”

Responding just as forcefully Ernie told him,

“So am I!”

My father, not taking no for an answer, said one more time, “If you don’t take the money, I might not get in!”

To which Ernie replied one last time, “If I do take your money, I might not get in!”

When we reached Ernie’s house he introduced us to his wife, of more than thirty years. They have no children and they live in a small, nice home amid a stand of trees. As we were leaving I noticed that my dad had hidden the money under a napkin in the kitchen. I gave Ernie and his wife my phone numbers and told him to call me when he needed a ride to church or anywhere else.

Then as we were getting into the car, Ernie walked over to us, asked us to join hands and said a prayer. As we were driving back home, Dad asked me if I would really go and pick up Ernie if he needed a ride to church. I told him I would. Then he asked, “You would go out of your way to pick him up and then take him all the way home?” Again I said I would, if he needed me to. I noticed my dad’s head was down and I could not see his face.

He then looked up at me with tear-filled eyes and said in a soft and gentle voice, “That’s me in you.” Then he smiled at me and added, “You’re on the road to heaven.”

Hana Yasmeen Ali

the soul of a

BUTTERFLY

It was not my father’s heavyweight championships that made him great; it was not his Olympic success, or his victory over the government. His greatness lies in his ability to keep love in his heart through all of the upheavals of life. His greatness is in his courage, it’s in his strength, and it’s in his compassion. In my eyes, he was even greater at being a loving father than he was at being a world champion.

He was great in the way that he made sure all of his children knew and respected each other. He taught us life’s most valuable lessons, not just with his words and moral opinions, but through his actions. He taught us about kindness, about friendship, about compassion, about generosity, about virtue, and about love. His office door was never closed, not even when he had important interviews and work to do. He was there for us even when he was away. He showered us all with affection and love, and made each of us feel special. He told me bedtime stories until I fell asleep at night. He brought my lunch to school. He helped me eat my vegetables, so I could have dessert. He always stood by me, no matter what. And he recorded every word that we had to say. He was great in his singular way of making me feel important.

With all of the prizes, trophies, awards, and treasures that my father has received and given away, his greatness lay in the way he kept the recordings of his children’s voices protected in a small safe.

Dad, believe me when I say that in my eyes you are the world’s greatest father, not because you were perfect, but because you gave us the greatest gift any parent could ever give a child … Yourself. You no longer have to communicate with words; your eyes express what is in your heart and your smile tells the story of love.

Whatever the future holds for my father, know that this is true … He has lived a life dedicated to God, and all that devotion lives on inside him. He has lived his life with strength and courage, and those virtues live on inside him. He has lived a life in pursuit of peace, now all that peace resides inside him. And he’s lived a life full of love, and all of that love lives on inside him.

He is happy, he is at peace, and he truly loves being Muhammad Ali.

Hana Yasmeen Ali

the soul of a

BUTTERFLY

WITHIN THE HANDS OF TIME

He no longer has the energy to walk against the wind,

So he has decided to make time a friend.

There are no limits while turning the hands of time,

All past and present moments are forever entwined.

Somewhere in the distance are shadows of the butterfly,

where all that once flourished, carries on in his mind.

Where youth and health will always thrive,

Where strength and speed are eternally fine,

And Golden Gloves still shine.

For all that he has gained and lost in sight of a greater good,

he weathered the storm with elegance and style,

beside a grace wherein truth stood

Now as the years pass, as age overtakes and grows.

There will be more stories told of legendary goals.

In retrospect of yesterday, remember what was great.

True heroes are those with hearts of gold,

and ideals that never fade.

So when you seek to know this glory, look to the open sky,

Where all that he has loved is treasured,

Always and forever prime, within the
Soul of a Butterfly
.

Hana Yasmeen Ali