At the end of a crudely constructed road with the presumptive name of, The Road of the Loving Heart, that ended at the home of a great and kind man known as Tursitala to the locals of Samoa.
This man was spending his last years in Samoa owing to a debilitating and insidious lung problem. The tropical weather suited his health as well as his soul.
Tursitala proved to be a kind and loving friend to all who presented themselves with a need. He was a friend to all and made regular visits even to those who languished in prison. He was able to get many released from prison to go home to their families. He even taught the local population about Christ even though he was not considered to be a missionary.
Tursitala grew to such esteem by the people of Samoa that the council of chiefs paid him the honor of being granted the position of a fellow chief.
The Road of the Loving Heart was constructed by former prisoners who had been released by the efforts and influence of Tursitala.
In the process of time, Tursitala succumbed to his besetting illness. People came from all over the islands to pay final respects to their fallen benefactor. One of them, a feeble old man, threw himself on his knees beside the body and cried out in sobs and tears:
“I am only a poor black man, and ignorant. Yet I am not afraid to come and take the last look of my dead friend’s face. Behold, Tursitala is dead. We were in prison We were in prison and he cared for us. The day was no longer than his kindness. Who is there so great as Tursitala? Who is there more loving-compassionate? What is your love compared to his love?”
So his chiefs took their friend and bore him on their shoulders to nearby Mount Vaea where they buried him on a spot overlooking the sea.
The epitaph on his tomb are words of Tursitala himself:
Under the wide and starry sky,
Dig the grave and let me lie.
Glad did I live and gladly die,
And I laid me down with a will.
This be the verse you grave for me:
Here he lies where he longed to be;
Home is the sailor, home from the sea,
And the hunter home from the hill.
You may already have guessed the identity of this Scotsman – Robert Louis Stevenson – author of many books including Treasure Island, books of poetry for children and adults, and a book of prayers.
