Media personality Ciru Muriuki has, in a glowing to late fiancé Charles ‘Charli’ Ouda said that she has never been loved by anyone like Charli did.
Speaking at the Baraza Media Lab, where a vigil was held in honour of Charli, Ciru narrated details of how they first met and how they grew to become love birds.
In Ciru’s tribute, she stated that even to her, their love story took her by surprise.
“The first time I ever saw Charlie on stage was several years ago when he was still at St Mary’s. I had just finished high school and my goodness I just thought he was so fine with that smile of his that lit up the stage. If anyone told me that 20-plus years later this luminous, effervescent man would have asked me to marry him, I would have laughed you out of the room,” she said.
“When Charlie and I reconnected when I came back from New York, I wasn’t looking. I had just lost my dad the year before and was still trying to navigate the enormity of that loss. So, he and I began a friendship that later had some benefits. Si tulisema tunasema ukweli? But after a while, it was clear that something between us was completely undeniable. So I fought it, then when I accepted it, now it was his turn to fight it. But there was this almost cosmic pull between us.”
Ciru noted that all her life, she had never felt loved as was the case with Charli.
She added that their love was built around a wonderful silly friendship they had.
The media personality said that she also felt safe around Charli and that he saw her for who she truly was.
“Let me tell you guys, I am almost 42 years and I have never been loved like that. It wasn’t about the grand gestures, it was about the comfort. The easy intimacy. That wonderfully silly friendship between us. Let me not lie to you, we’ve gossiped about most of you people in this room. And then there was the absolute safety. Charli saw me and I mean he truly saw me. It was such a beautiful love,” Ciru said.
She also remembered Charli as a man who appreciated art, was never selfish with sharing knowledge and that he was always ready to help whenever he was called upon.
Ciru said that her fiancé was a visionary who approached life with childlike wonder and fostered an environment of learning and exploration.
She went on to thank Charli for always taking care of her and for being the kindest man she had ever known.
“Now my love, I speak to you, thank you for showing me what true love was. Thank you for being a perfect example of a gentleman and a real man. Thank you for being the kindest man I have ever known. Thank you for taking care of me. It is a privilege and honour of my life to have loved and be loved by you. Charli, I will miss you until I join you.”
