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Farewell ‘Umaga'
Dec. 4, 2009 was Umaga’s last "umaga (morning)." World Wrestling Entertainment’s (WWE) Samoan Bulldozer passed away in Houston, Texas hospital last week due to heart attack. I learned about the sad news through a news website. Honestly, I never really liked Umaga. Like a typical wrestling fanatic, I am one of those who hate the "bad guys" and go crazy over the "good ones." But his death really made me feel bad, and I mean for days. Umaga is regarded as one of WWE’s villains. He is like a monster that was freed after years of being trapped, isolated and abandoned and will kill anyone who gets in his way. Umaga is well-known for his tattooed face and body; he does not speak and is a known rule breaker — he often gets disqualified for playing too violent such as using a chair or other objects to hit his challenger. He is a heartless opponent, a monster in disguise of a wrestler. His opponents get easily intimidated by the mere mention of his name by the ring announcer, Uuuu-maga! What more in seeing his tattooed 6-foot-4, 350-lb frame inside the ring. Rookie wrestlers tremble in fright whenever they are made to face with the Samoan Savage, giving them the worry that the match might be the end of their careers. I, for one, hate Umaga for being a cold-blooded fighter. It seems like in every Umaga fight, a stretcher and an ambulance should always be on standby. Most of the time the referee needs to stop him from attacking his opponent because even when his foe is already unconscious, Umaga still can’t get enough. One of the best WWE bouts I have ever seen was when Umaga faced reigning champion John Cena. That was the very first time I saw Umaga vulnerable and helpless. Cena won by choking the Samoan Bulldozer eventually forcing Umaga to submission. It will make any wrestling fan say, "finally, someone has tamed the "beast"". But learning about Umaga’s death brought me back to reality. Umaga is just a role being played by Edward Smith Fatu in real life, "Eki" to his friends; he is a husband, a father, a son, a brother, a cousin, a friend. Umaga is the cousin of Dwayne “The Rock" Johnson. Though Umaga the monster is hated by fans during his fights — unless he helps the good guys in certain matches — Umaga the wrestler is loved by the wrestling communty.
Live this day as if it will be your last. Remember that you will only find ''tomorrow'' on the calendars of fools. Forget yesterday's defeats and ignore the problems of tomorrow. This is it. Doomsday. All you have. Make it the best day of your year. The saddest words you can ever utter are, ''If I had my life to live over again. ''Take the baton, now. Run with it! This is your day!.
