Who's That?...You Know Him Too!

My New Year's resolution is to not make any. I simply want to continue my journey with Christ and keep evolving into the man I'm called to be. I guess this will be a life-long journey. I'm down for the ride.

Prioritization will either be my downfall or the catalyst to launch me to the next level. In the past it has been the cinder blocks tied to my feet. Lately, I have been working on removing clutter. Life is much more peaceful when you know what's NOT important. It's like going through your inbox and deleting what you don't need. It makes it easier to see what you do need, what's important. There's more structure and order in my life now. I love spam blocker, lol!

So, what's important to C.L? My walk with Christ, spending quality time with family (not just being in each other’s presence), my physical and mental health, the future of our youths, financial wisdom, and my legacy. My walk with Christ is the foundation for all that proceeds in my life. Christ has done things for me that I could not have imagined a few months ago. I know He loves me. He loves you too. Trust me he does. I always thought I was too screwed up for His love. I considered myself a 'goner', hopeless, worthless. I was wrong! The word of God was right! Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. ~Matthew 6:33 

What will my family and friends, my community, and those who know me say about me when I am no longer here? At one point in life this did not matter to me at all. I felt that when I left this world, the things I did would no longer matter. I now know that what you do while you are on this earth is just as important when you're gone. I need to pave a new way for my children, grandchildren, nieces and nephews. There are too many bad habits and negative mentalities that get passed down from one generation to the next. If you examine the genealogy of most people of great success, you will likely find a progressive pattern. You may find a grandmother who worked two jobs and sold knitting's or pies to bring in extra money. A parent who had to put education on the back burner to provide and later went back to school to earn a degree. These lessons of hard work, resilience, and importance of education are what pave the road to success and stability for the next generation. The same holds true for the negative things. Lack of interest for education, divorce, infidelity, defeated mentalities, and bad spending habits are usually passed down from previous generations. Who will be the one to break the family generational curse? 

 Now I don't want this to seem like I'm writing my eulogy, but my legacy is very important to me now. I want to be remembered as a MAN who had a genuine interest in the well-being and future of others, a selfless man. The FATHER that didn't care if he got the roses while he could still smell them. The BROTHER who, through his faith and love for Christ, helped changed the course of his family's future. A SON that had a positive influence on those around him and others he never met. The GRANDPA that always left you with jewels of knowledge when you spoke to him. The UNCLE who understood you. A financially wise FRIEND. What kind of impact do you want to have?

*ALL THINGS THROUGH CHRIST*

Controlled Amnesia; Elastic Mentality

So I'll be starting a new job this coming Monday. I'm really happy because it's been a long time since my last job ended. Actually, this has been the longest I've ever been without work. Though it is temporary work I'm still excited and even more grateful to have this opportunity. God has been so good to me. There have been a few disappointments along the way; such as life. But through it all, I've learned to not let the feeling of disappointment consume me. I now know that, "out of rejection comes new direction."

*Let me take a moment to say that my family has played such an important role in my survival through these times. Without their help I don't know what or where I'd be today. They have lightened the stress load tremendously. I LOVE YOU ALL. 

What makes a sales-person great at what they do? It is their ability to bounce back from rejection. It is almost as if they have the power of 'voluntary-amnesia'. We too, need to acquire this power. Now I don't want to be misunderstood. I'm not saying to just forget all about it, because the first step in rectifying any problem is to acknowledge and analyze the details. If we don't know what went wrong, how can we change it?

A key part of acknowledging and analyzing is self honesty. We must have the courage to be honest with ourselves about what may have gone wrong on our behalf. Mistakes are key learning instruments. If there is responsibility to be taken, take it! We must also accept the fact that we are not and never will be perfect and some things are simply beyond our control. Sometimes we tend to put unreasonable amounts of pressure on ourselves. I am all for setting high goals/expectations, but we must remain honest with ourselves. Once all the facts have been acknowledged and analyzed and we know what went wrong, we can now adjust and advance.

Adjustment is the response to a miscarried attempt. Advancement is the evidence of self-forgiveness and a lesson learned. Adjusting can be the tough part. This is when the self-interrogation begins. How do I adjust? Will this work? What if it doesn't work? Well, if we don't try we'll never know. The fact of the matter is, we will have to repeat these in pursuit of our goals. How often do we get it right the first time? Much of life is trial-and-error. Once we've made our adjustments we can now tap into our 'voluntary-amnesia'! Let's evict the memory of our rejection and press forward. Let's advance. Remember, this is applicable to the various arenas of life (finances, relationships, career paths, etc). Rejection and failure are alive and how we respond will greatly impact our future. ACKNOWLEDGE, ANALYZE, ADJUST, ADVANCE.

*CUT THE ANCHORS OF REJECTION AND FAILURE*  

Passion and Purpose, Key Elements

There are many lifestyles that can be detrimental to our well-being and the security of our future. A lifestyle of crime, dishonesty, and pessimism can plague not only our lives, but the lives of those who love us. But the one that trumps all these is a life without passion and purpose. Notice I used the word AND not OR. It is imperative that we have both active in our lives.

I strongly believe that passion breeds purpose. In my first blog, I stated that I was having a very difficult time figuring out what my purpose was on this grand-design. In hindsight, I realize that my problem was directly attributed to my lack of passion. With sadness, I can honestly say there wasn't a single thing in my life, for many years, which I felt passionate about. This is not to say that I didn't love anything or anyone. I'm simply saying the enthusiasm wasn't there. Without passion it is almost impossible to know your purpose and if you don't know you can't fulfill it.

{Now, I have to take time out to give thanks to my Lord Jesus Christ for rescuing me from a life without passion and purpose. I can say with full confidence, that if you are like me and have lost your passion and sense of purpose, it can be renewed and strengthened through Jesus Christ.}

As much as this society is spiraling downward in morals and ethics, my passion is for trying to understand and help people psychologically. I must say my enthusiasm is inclined toward the youths. I'm very concerned about what our children, brothers, sisters, nephews and nieces are hearing from their authority figures in school. Are the seeds of our future being nourished with words of encouragement and confidence or are they being reprimanded more than praised? Are the teachers conditioned to put their focus on what's wrong and not what's right? Are they expending more effort into consequences rather than solutions? What real purpose does a DETENTION serve? Sounds like preparation for jail to me; mental preparation. Did you know that some schools set dates for your child to serve his/her time? Sound familiar? Yeah I'm shaking my head too. Sorry, Passion took over for a moment there!

Now I know that children, at times, can need a kick-in-the-butt to get up and ready for school in the morning. Sometimes that requires some yelling. But allow me to assume the role of Picasso for a moment. Twelve year old Kurt arrives at school a little upset from the stern talking-to he received from mom at home and on the way. Kurt gets to first period and gets back the results of yesterdays test. 'D'! His teacher moves on with the class leaving the students who did not pass to deal with the feeling of failure on their own. Kurt goes about his day, receiving a detention from his third period teacher for having his head down in class (and yes they give detentions for that in some schools). The end of the day is here and Kurt has not heard a single word of encouragement, hope, or confidence from the authority figures he spends one third of his day with. He goes home to explain himself to his parents(period) Had that first period teacher taken three minutes to instill some positive affirmations into HER students, maybe the detention could have been avoided. But we'll never know. For the parents and others who are involved in their lives outside of school we have to do our part as well. Swallow that anger and disappointment and speak nourishing words. PLEASE! Do it for their future and well-being. Their future is our future.      

I believe my purpose, my role, on this 'grand-design' is to find effective ways to boost morale and properly nourish the seeds of our future. Sounds like a plate-full, but I am so passionate and concerned about the future of our young ones and I truly believe it starts with a nutritious mind.

{I encourage everyone to embark on a journey to finding your passion and purpose. When you lack these two key elements of life you are in danger of becoming a wanderer without substance. I am a man speaking from experience. Find your niche. Play your part.}

*I MUST MAKE AN IMPACT*

Music, I Love You

Music. What can I say, you've always been there for me. I have always had a great love for you. The thing I love about you the most, and trust me it is very hard to pick just one thing, is how the collaboration of instruments(whether authentic or synthesized)and an artist can embed memories in our minds that last a life time and suture wounded hearts.

Have you ever heard a song that you haven't heard in a long time and it sparked memories(good or bad)of a particular person, place, event, or time in your life? Sometimes it's scary how detailed and vivid these memories can be. You begin to remember who you were with when you first heard the song. You remember what you did that day. You even remember what you were wearing. If you close your eyes you can almost revisit that time. Personally, many of my memories have songs tagged in them; or vice versa.

If my choice of music were personified it would definitely be suffering from SPD (split personality disorder) LOL! To sugar-coat it we'll use the term eclectic. I've learned that expanding your range of music expands your range of friends. Now some people would rather stick to one genre of music, and their current friends and would never step outside of that box, and that is respectable. As for myself, I am open to a variety of music and friends. As a young black man i've gotten a lot of  confusion-filled stares while riding in my Chevy Impala banging System of A Down, Godsmack, or ATB just to name a few. That has never bothered me, because as I stated in the beginning i've always had a great LOVE for music so I can't allow the stereotypes/expectations of society to subject me to one genre. Feel me?

QUICK STORY: I initially became good friends with my neighbors, because they heard me blasting System of A Down( S.O.A.D.)while they were walking past my house. They lived a bit up-the-way so we had never spoken. It happened to be one their favorite bands also, so that initiated a convo about music. They even admitted that they were kind of surprised.

If you have a special connection with 'Music' then you know there is so much to be learned, and limiting your range limits your knowledge. This is not to say that people with a wider range are smarter. I'm simply saying you'll be surprised by what can be learned by expanding.

*GIVE MUSIC A CHANCE*
 

What do you think the title should be???

For the past few months I have been making some changes in my life. Changes in my health, associates, surroundings, habits and thinking. When I was in my late teens and early twenties there was a floating myth that at around the age of 25 you begin to see life differently. I couldn't foresee that happening to me, partly because the people I chose to surround myself with were not displaying any signs of change. Well, here I am at age 25, viewing life through new eyes.

"You can't run with the chickens and expect to soar with the eagles." I don't want to spend life with my head tilted back, watching in amazement, as the eagles soar above me. I don't want to be a spectator. A sitting duck? Not me!

I've spent an unreasonable amount of time being a wanderer and dreamer. Though I had dreams of where I wanted to be, I just could not figure out WHY I was here and WHERE my place was on this 'grand-design'. FACT: We all have a role to play in this life. A niche. As a young man I have come to the realization that there is no part for a dreamer who only dreams of dreams. We all have to face the realities of this life. Our lives. Dreaming of something better is what keeps us moving forward, reaching for more, but dreaming with your arms folded and legs crossed will only leave you in a trance. Be a dreamer on the go. 

Think about this for a moment. "You can not change what you are not willing to confront." Have you ever neglected to check your bank account or open your credit card statement in fear of the TRUTH? I can hesitantly raise my hand on this one. I have overdrawn my account a-time-or-two because I did not want to confront the plague of leprosy my account may have. The ability to confront is a major step in getting ourselves on the path to our dreams. When we ignore our problems they don't go away. They get bigger and build more power. We just take a step to the side and try to go around them not realizing we are taking the long route to our dreams and we WILL be revisited by the resin of our decision to ignore responsibilities. This can be applied to many aspects of our lives, not just financially.

Imagine for a moment that you are running around a 400m track and the field in the middle is your 'issue'. Anyone who has ever ran track, on any level, will tell you that the best lanes are 1-4. Though lane 8 may seem to be the best lane, it indeed takes that runner longer to hit the home stretch. The further away we run from our problems, the longer it takes to attain change and victory. Many of us know, someone or through our own experience, that a $75 traffic ticket can turn into a DL suspension. An ignored $100 court fee can result in a warrant for your arrest. A $60 expired tag can get you pulled over at the WORST possible time. And if you have my 'luck' you will get all three with a big red ribbon on top! Don't be afraid to assume lane one despite the fact it LOOKS farthest from the finish line. CONFRONT, CONQUER, CLIMB.

*MY FIRST BLOG*