As I have the opportunity to have another birthday in life, I think about important things as I guess quite a few people do on their birthdays. At a certain age You reflect upon your past, and what you've done, Kind of proud of certain things in life, while cringing at others. You also take a gander around you and feel out where you are standing at the moment. what your life is like, Who you have around you at the present time, and what your state of mind is. The last thing that you think about is where you are headed. Because there is always somewhere you think you have to be. Whether it be physical, or mental. Sometimes the right now is only good enough until birthdays come around, because birthdays have a way of reminding us of our mortality. There are no bigger mixed feelings for some than to be at the crossroads of appreciating the aspect of getting older, and dreading it at the same time.
Some people get depressed at their birthdays for a myriad of reasons. Since I understand human nature I get why that happens, but I could never identify with it fully. Living another year is a privilege that some people didn't get on a day that happens to have fallen on your particular birthday. I always wondered why people took that for granted, just because they haven't found love, have lines in their face, or grey hair, or aren't making whatever money they feel they need to make at some particular junction. Yes time is running out as we speak, but there is no need to be wary of that situation, because it is something that you have no control over. What you do have control over is you, and how you perceive things, and how you approach them, and how you view events in your life past and present. Which brings me to my own Birthday.
I consider myself at this point in life to be extremely fortunate. I can look back at my life and say that I have had some worthy life growing experiences, that at the time I wasn't happy about them happening, but upon reflection, they put character in my soul. Some people never have the chance to love and share a life with someone, and I had that opportunity twice. Some people have by this time lost parents or grandparents, or have never even had a substantial parental figure to ground them. I still have mine. Some people never figure out just what they have for a talent, and never develop that spiritual outlet needed to extend themselves. I fortunately have the ability to play music and give of my inner self in such a manner that it may please some, but if I for some reason never get the opportunity to play in front of an audience again, I will still hopefully have the reward itself of playing music, because that is its own reward to me. I still believe in a dream that I have, and that dream is fully possible, if I work hard, and persevere with discipline, and focus.
I am not wealthy by any stretch of the imagination, but I am rich beyond my wildest imagination with friends who love me, respect me, and I can talk to. With family who has always been there when I needed them, and kept me grounded and based in reality when I get too high faluttin' for my own good, and I have managed to surround myself with good people who don't destroy, but build. Whether it be themselves, or their own particular corner of the universe, they have a purpose in life and accept high standards of behavior within themselves and others around them. Drama is a burden that I don't have patience for, but is irrelevant because the people I choose to spend significant quality of face time with, don't either.
At this point in my life I still don't know as much as some, but I certainly know more than others. I am not a slave to the almighty dollar, as money is not my prime directive. My prime directive is being a good person, and try doing the things I love to do. I sleep well at night knowing that I treat people the way I would like to be treated, and that I do what I can to the best of my ability. If something wasn't enough, then I certainly wish it was, but if I did my best, then that is what I could do.
I guess I feel fortunate for all of the above, and the fact that I have my health, my mind, and my dreams intact, and they are all intertwined to make me who I believe that I am today. Whether that be someone's cup of tea or not is not my concern, nor is my concern to please everyone I come across in life. My goal is to be happy with myself as a child of the universe, and to in my own way try to change a little of the world, or at least leave my space in it a little better than when I got here. I feel good about being the age I am living in the time I am living now because there are fascinating incredible things that can be seen, and some of those fascinating incredible things are as simple as a sunrise in my back yard, or the sound of Bullfrogs. It sounds corny, and simple but it's what I have learned and accept. Appreciate the things that deserve appreciation, and everything else is icing on the cake. And one of the very things to appreciate and not take for granted is growing older. So as my age number changes today, I don't mind growing older. I just don't want to grow old..
.And as the people that know me, or correspond with me, or if I have in some way made some positive impact upon you, then I am on the right path. What path is that? The "leaving things better than I found them". As I look forward, I know just where I want to go and what it takes to get there. I have no idea what the future holds but one thing is certain..There will be setbacks, and leaps forward,, tears and laughter, good times, and times where I may feel miserable. That's what life is.. a ball of unpredictable contradictions. A process of learning, growing, and evolving. But I am glad to be a part of the process. And no matter what the future has in store for me, so far the process has been something I wouldn't trade for the world.
Here's to life!
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Thursday, February 9, 2012
Perchance To Dream: Driving that train, high to attain
The hardest thing about having a dream, is that because it is your dream, others may not understand it. The people you trust to tell that dream to may tell you that it's unrealistic, that you can't do it, or put "ifs" in front of you, saying "What if it doesn't happen?", or asking questions like "How much time will you devote to this pursuit?" Those who dream don't ask those questions, so it is perplexing when those questions are presented, because it never crosses their mind. The only things that cross the mind of one who has a dream are 1)What the dream is 2)How to go about this dream in a logical realistic fashion, and 3)Never giving up. Sometimes people plant roadblocks in your mind because they just can't see how the pursuit of one's dream can be beneficial, consuming, and rewarding all at once. A person's dream is not something separate from them, or something that just comes and goes like the full moon. A person's dream is part of them, and a great portion of who they are, what they believe, and what makes them tick. When you understand a person's dream, and just how they go about it, you understand them, and that dream is a big bay window into their soul. When you dismiss a person's dream, you are in a sense cutting their legs off, and dismissing a part of them that they feel is the most valuable and sacred. If you don't believe in someone's dream, it sometimes is best to just keep that to yourself, because the most hurtful thing that someone can say to someone with a dream is that it is nonsense, or that they don't believe it can happen for them. That is like saying the bay window into their soul has a crack in it, and they need it replaced.
Upon hearing things like that, the person with a dream has a choice. Be discouraged, get angry, or be more determined than ever to focus on that dream. Getting discouraged does nothing, but create self doubt, where you will begin to hold yourself back because of questioning just what you are doing. This can lead to loss of focus, and drive to succeed, because of the fear of failure. Fear of failure is a killer of dreams because it puts the "What if" into the equation again. When pursuing dreams there is no room for "What ifs." You must be prepared for setbacks of course, but you must be confident that your plan for obtaining this dream will work. That is confidence. And confidence fuels desire. Even if no one believes that you can do something, you have to believe it. you have to believe in yourself to the fullest, because you will then try to improve upon the foundation of what you are doing. And therefore getting better, can only make things better in the long run.
Getting angry will do absolutely nothing either, because it will take you away from your game of pursuit. You will be clouded by the emotion of anger, and won't see clearly, because you will try to achieve something out of spite more than out of desire. Determination is the key. If someone seems to discourage you in some way, or say that your dream is nonsense, then be sorry to hear that they feel that way, and that they have a right to think that, but disagree, and continue. There is no point in getting angry, because people have their feelings, and their feelings are valid because it is theirs. But theirs don't have to be yours. It's that simple. So just be more determined for yourself, rather than trying to show others that they are wrong.
Your dream is yours. you should hold onto it and protect it like some ancient artifact that you personally found. Because that's what it is. And if someone tries to take it from you, then you need to hold onto it tighter, and carry it within you and around you closer to your heart. Because a person without dreams, no matter how small they may be, is a person who only gets up in the morning because they have to..Not because they want to. Small dreams, big dreams, seemingly against odds dreams inside of a person are what makes us all different. You and I and everyone who reads this have significantly different versions of how we see the world, ourselves, and our place in it. Someone looking at me, may see me vastly different than I see myself, and may not understand just what I do, or why..But that works in all ways. I may not understand another person's dreams, and sometimes may think that they may be looney for thinking that it can be achieved..But I do understand that it is necessary and healthy for them to want what they want..So I can either encourage, or say nothing...Because I understand where they are coming from.
Be now...No one knows what's going to happen tomorrow, so do what you have to do today, in the chance that there is a tomorrow, you can be there when it happens continuing your pursuit of your dream. Don't ever give up..Not for anyone, because your dream is part of you. And if you want something bad enough, you can achieve it whether it takes 5 years, or 25 years. Keep pushing forward, and keep with the plan..Perchance to dream now..Perhaps reality later.
Upon hearing things like that, the person with a dream has a choice. Be discouraged, get angry, or be more determined than ever to focus on that dream. Getting discouraged does nothing, but create self doubt, where you will begin to hold yourself back because of questioning just what you are doing. This can lead to loss of focus, and drive to succeed, because of the fear of failure. Fear of failure is a killer of dreams because it puts the "What if" into the equation again. When pursuing dreams there is no room for "What ifs." You must be prepared for setbacks of course, but you must be confident that your plan for obtaining this dream will work. That is confidence. And confidence fuels desire. Even if no one believes that you can do something, you have to believe it. you have to believe in yourself to the fullest, because you will then try to improve upon the foundation of what you are doing. And therefore getting better, can only make things better in the long run.
Getting angry will do absolutely nothing either, because it will take you away from your game of pursuit. You will be clouded by the emotion of anger, and won't see clearly, because you will try to achieve something out of spite more than out of desire. Determination is the key. If someone seems to discourage you in some way, or say that your dream is nonsense, then be sorry to hear that they feel that way, and that they have a right to think that, but disagree, and continue. There is no point in getting angry, because people have their feelings, and their feelings are valid because it is theirs. But theirs don't have to be yours. It's that simple. So just be more determined for yourself, rather than trying to show others that they are wrong.
Your dream is yours. you should hold onto it and protect it like some ancient artifact that you personally found. Because that's what it is. And if someone tries to take it from you, then you need to hold onto it tighter, and carry it within you and around you closer to your heart. Because a person without dreams, no matter how small they may be, is a person who only gets up in the morning because they have to..Not because they want to. Small dreams, big dreams, seemingly against odds dreams inside of a person are what makes us all different. You and I and everyone who reads this have significantly different versions of how we see the world, ourselves, and our place in it. Someone looking at me, may see me vastly different than I see myself, and may not understand just what I do, or why..But that works in all ways. I may not understand another person's dreams, and sometimes may think that they may be looney for thinking that it can be achieved..But I do understand that it is necessary and healthy for them to want what they want..So I can either encourage, or say nothing...Because I understand where they are coming from.
Be now...No one knows what's going to happen tomorrow, so do what you have to do today, in the chance that there is a tomorrow, you can be there when it happens continuing your pursuit of your dream. Don't ever give up..Not for anyone, because your dream is part of you. And if you want something bad enough, you can achieve it whether it takes 5 years, or 25 years. Keep pushing forward, and keep with the plan..Perchance to dream now..Perhaps reality later.
Thursday, February 2, 2012
The Hippest Trip: What Saturday morning Soul was really saying
With the passing of Don Cornelius who was the architect of "Soul Train" it was eerily ironic that his passing was on the first day of February which is Black History month. With all of the rich history of Blacks in America it is an important month because for too long in this country we were a visible people who were treated like we were invisible. I hear people ask just why there has to be a Black History month anyway, and the simple answer that I have is this: History submerged is history not only rearranged, but sometimes history forgotten. Like it or not, that is my answer. For too long Blacks in this country contributed amazing things of beauty, bravery, and greatness, but were denied it in history books which led to dismissal in many minds about just who we were as a people. This country was built on the backs of every race, and creed, but Blacks have a special stake and place in it because of just how we ended up here. In a colonized land that was deemed civilized, but owned people as property, and destroyed families by murder, sell offs, and keeping them in the darkness of illiteracy to rule over them. All of this, and yet we fought in every war, became inventors, scholars, artists, pioneers, and key innovators in pushing the country forward towards greatness, and yet eating a simple piece of toast in a room with others was denied, and brutally enforced.
We did not just 1)get off of the boat, 2)become slaves,3) get freed by President Lincoln, and then4) march on Washington with Dr King, singing "We shall overcome" but that to some,that is all of our history , and to them, encompasses who we are. There is a rich and diverse history there, full of great people, bad people, suffering, and triumph, and stories that Hollywood could never dream of. There are nuances(there's that word again) of us as a people. And within those nuances and hidden meanings of what we tried to say about ourselves, particularly after the Civil Rights movement of the 60's, and within the Black Power movement of the 70's is Don Cornelius and Soul Train.
In the 70's Blacks had found themselves still trying to reap the benefits of the efforts of Dr. King, and the movement not in the respect of rights, but in the respect now of individualism, and power. They now knew that there was an audience and a craving for their culture, their music, and what they wanted to say, and how they wanted to be seen. And Black people wanted to be seen as sexy, as heroes, as artists of intellect, and as people with a style that others could possibly want to see, and copy because imitation is the greatest form of flattery. That's why there was the Blaxploitation movement in Hollywood, and that's why Soul Train was as important as it was. Yes it was only a dance show on Saturday mornings, but the hidden meaning was more than that. The show said basically, "Look at us..Hear our music, see our style. We are sexy people who have love in our hearts, and we create beautiful art." Don knew this, and the show brought Black people and that style into the homes of millions, some who had never even seen a Black person in their lives let alone see one dance, move, and be sexy on Television. This was not 'The Ed Sullivan Show" where a black artist comes on does a song, gets interviewed briefly then goes away. This show had Black style, Black dialect and slang, and Black heart and soul attached to it, and within it. And the rest of America couldn't look away because it was so foreign to them, yet so cool it was like looking at Jupiter through a telescope. You know it's there, and you are looking at it, yet it seems impossible to be what it is.
. Black style and music had always been copied, but now with the widening number of Televisions in homes, it was inescapable. The lingo, the clothes, the dance moves, and the music, all contribute to the admiration and humanizing of a race of people. And when you admire a people, and their culture, you see them in a different light. You want to know more about them and their history. As you dig into their history, you see all of the important things that took place that they were a part of..And when that happens, you realize that they are human beings just like you, and therefore you relate, and can call them friend..That is believe it or not, just such a thing that a little dance show on Saturdays did for race relations, and showing the world that we are people of great emotional content. Once again, music is the bridge that brings people together.
So today you have people of all colors and of all races saying thank you, and goodbye to Don Cornelius because they get it. They understand what he did by having a show such as that during a time such as that. It was needed badly, and he did it with style, and a deep Baritone voice. He put a great deal of the music that you and I love in our minds, while showing us part of the revolution is in fact televised.
I remember watching Soul Train as a kid, and thinking to myself "I am so proud to be a part of that in some way". And in some strange way, the rest of America at some point may have said that very same thing..Because for even a brief minute, they may have said to themselves things like, "Boy those kids can sure dance", or "Wow that was a great song", or "That show looks like it's fun to be on". And not once during one of those sentences did the word "Black" ever pop up. It was people..And that's what Soul Train will be remembered for within the nuances of Black history. Showing us as people.
Thank you Mr. Cornelius. Rest in Peace.
We did not just 1)get off of the boat, 2)become slaves,3) get freed by President Lincoln, and then4) march on Washington with Dr King, singing "We shall overcome" but that to some,that is all of our history , and to them, encompasses who we are. There is a rich and diverse history there, full of great people, bad people, suffering, and triumph, and stories that Hollywood could never dream of. There are nuances(there's that word again) of us as a people. And within those nuances and hidden meanings of what we tried to say about ourselves, particularly after the Civil Rights movement of the 60's, and within the Black Power movement of the 70's is Don Cornelius and Soul Train.
In the 70's Blacks had found themselves still trying to reap the benefits of the efforts of Dr. King, and the movement not in the respect of rights, but in the respect now of individualism, and power. They now knew that there was an audience and a craving for their culture, their music, and what they wanted to say, and how they wanted to be seen. And Black people wanted to be seen as sexy, as heroes, as artists of intellect, and as people with a style that others could possibly want to see, and copy because imitation is the greatest form of flattery. That's why there was the Blaxploitation movement in Hollywood, and that's why Soul Train was as important as it was. Yes it was only a dance show on Saturday mornings, but the hidden meaning was more than that. The show said basically, "Look at us..Hear our music, see our style. We are sexy people who have love in our hearts, and we create beautiful art." Don knew this, and the show brought Black people and that style into the homes of millions, some who had never even seen a Black person in their lives let alone see one dance, move, and be sexy on Television. This was not 'The Ed Sullivan Show" where a black artist comes on does a song, gets interviewed briefly then goes away. This show had Black style, Black dialect and slang, and Black heart and soul attached to it, and within it. And the rest of America couldn't look away because it was so foreign to them, yet so cool it was like looking at Jupiter through a telescope. You know it's there, and you are looking at it, yet it seems impossible to be what it is.
. Black style and music had always been copied, but now with the widening number of Televisions in homes, it was inescapable. The lingo, the clothes, the dance moves, and the music, all contribute to the admiration and humanizing of a race of people. And when you admire a people, and their culture, you see them in a different light. You want to know more about them and their history. As you dig into their history, you see all of the important things that took place that they were a part of..And when that happens, you realize that they are human beings just like you, and therefore you relate, and can call them friend..That is believe it or not, just such a thing that a little dance show on Saturdays did for race relations, and showing the world that we are people of great emotional content. Once again, music is the bridge that brings people together.
So today you have people of all colors and of all races saying thank you, and goodbye to Don Cornelius because they get it. They understand what he did by having a show such as that during a time such as that. It was needed badly, and he did it with style, and a deep Baritone voice. He put a great deal of the music that you and I love in our minds, while showing us part of the revolution is in fact televised.
I remember watching Soul Train as a kid, and thinking to myself "I am so proud to be a part of that in some way". And in some strange way, the rest of America at some point may have said that very same thing..Because for even a brief minute, they may have said to themselves things like, "Boy those kids can sure dance", or "Wow that was a great song", or "That show looks like it's fun to be on". And not once during one of those sentences did the word "Black" ever pop up. It was people..And that's what Soul Train will be remembered for within the nuances of Black history. Showing us as people.
Thank you Mr. Cornelius. Rest in Peace.
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