| DEATH OF THE BATTLER by James The church was packed for the funeral. It was held at the same church were our heroine had thwarted a man trying to steal her purse. That man, now almost 90, was now sitting in the back of the congregation; he had not tried another theft since then. The Smasher and his brother were there. Both had learned to respect women more and were now both married; together, they even founded a local women’s wrestling league to give them opportunity. They ran the league now full-time since they were retired. The entire football team whose captains she had put on the ground in the movie theater parking lot was sitting in a few rows in the center. A few of the gang members she had knocked out in an alley were there, too; they now ran an anti-gang program for young people. The bodybuilder she had buried in the sand on the beach was there with his wife and kids, as was the student whose father had tried to attack her in her front yard. Her therapist and his still underachieving son were, too. Some of her former and current self-defense and regular school students were there, too, as well some of her other Battle Royale victims. And of course, there was Jill’s husband, Jim, who now stood after the Mass was complete to give the eulogy. He wiped tears from his eyes and said. “I thank you all for being here. My wife, Jill, she was indeed a battler. Some of you here experienced that first hand. But I guess your broken noses, wrists, ankles, hands, and gouged eyes are nothing compared to what my beautiful wife had to endure in her body these last ten years. Yes, cancer can wreck havoc like nothing else can. However, just like in her fights, she never gave up. Ten, I repeat, ten times this cancer went into remission; that is unheard of.” Before he could go on, there was a sustained round of applause. “This was the battler of her life and she fought harder than any of us could have fought. Her girl power was exercised like never before. Heck, just a month or so again, she flipped me in bed. “The congregation laughed a little. “Well, no one can cheat death, only Jesus Christ can overcome death, but I know her girl power extended her life many many years beyond what it should have been.” There was applause. “Anyway, as Jimmy Valvano said at the ESPY’s, cancer can take away my body, but it cannot take away my mind, it cannot take away my soul, and it cannot take away my spirit. I would go even further than Jimmy V and say cancer strengthened my wife’s mind, it strengthened her soul, and it strengthened her spirit!” Applause followed. “My wife taught school and self-defense lessons right up until just a few months ago. And I know that many of your lives were reformed after your encounters with her. If I were to poll you, I bet you would say you are glad you experienced the pain to your body parts and vital organs because you gotten something greater in return; a greater appreciation of women, of what they bring to the table, and how much power they really have.” There was another round of applause. “Yes, my wife was and is beautiful. She handled many things besides this cancer that few of us could do. Could you walk into an alley in the middle of the night and defeat not one but three gangsters trying to hurt you? Could any of you, to save a boy’s life, go toe to toe with a professional wrestler in a ring in his back yard and come out on top? Could any of you thwart a bank robbery with your bare hands? I don’t think so. Her legacy, however, goes beyond those what we might deem extraordinary things; well, for her, she might not consider them extraordinary, for she saw herself as exercising the girl power that all women have. In any event, she did what we might consider more ordinary things that produced extraordinary results. I know, for example, a few of her students have had to use the self-defense skills she taught them in real life. And also, a few of her English students have books published now thanks to the skills she taught them. Her influence will continue to be felt in the people who read her stories posted on websites, and read or watch her interviews. The Jill Johnson self-defense Academy will continue to train generations of girls to be able to stand up for them physically and otherwise.” Some more applause erupted. “However, above all as far as I am concerned, she will live on in my heart. I loved her, she loved me, and we were a perfect couple. Despite her power, I was never afraid of her; I know she wasn’t afraid of me. We loved and respected each other. Though we never were able to have a child of our own, her legacy will live on in the lives of what we might call her spiritual children, namely her students as well as her victims. We will miss her face, her smile, and yes, even her palm strike and side kicks.” There was some laughter. “To conclude, I will invite three of her students to come up and pose and then we will all stand up and give one final salute to my beloved wife. So Tonya, Delores, and Sasha, if you will.” With that, three teenagers came up to the front of the church. Tonya got into a tiger claw defensive position, Delores released a front punch and held it in place, and Sasha did a roundhouse kick and held her foot up. Then everyone in the congregation stood up, made a fist with their right hand, and placed it in the palm of their left in front of them. Then they all shouted in unison, GIRL POWER!!!! After a very long applause, Jim concluded, “May she rest in peace.” May she indeed. |