Friday, August 10, 2007
"You are what you think"
No, this is not a reinterpretation of Earl Nightingale’s The Strangest Secret. Rather, it’s an attempt to bridge the gap between motivational rhetoric and real life application.
Let me set the stage. I grew up in Civil Rights, Alabama. Every February we, like much of the nation, relearned how Martin Luther King, Jr. marched for the rights of Southern Blacks, how Malcolm X rallied the troops in the north and how Ms. Rosa Parks jumpstarted the now famous Montgomery Bus Boycott. There were a few other topics that got their month’s worth of attention, and I do mean “a few”, but these were the picks of the litter.
While these glorious moments and figures in history provide us with a sense of overcoming, they really do little for practical motivation, not when every year we’re reminded that “America hates you” and “America owes you”.
This very thought has spread through many communities like cancer breeding laziness and contempt in those who haven’t been able to venture outside and witness, first hand, the successes that exist. Many of my friends who fell by the wayside did so simply because in their minds, it was not worth it to even try because they believed, really believed, that the system is set up against them.
I imagine that I could have developed the same thought process, but many times, while my friends were on the street enjoying each other’s company, I was sent away to summer camp. Or I was involuntarily enrolled in the free art program offered in another neighborhood’s community center. Often times, I was even given assignments to complete during the summer vacation!!! Imagine that, an 11 year old kid, in the house during the summer reading encyclopedias because he has to have his assignment completed before mom returns from work.
What I didn’t notice then was that being left in an art class in a neighborhood of “unfamiliars” forced me to build confidence in myself. Going to summer camp allowed me to interact with people whose lives were completely different from mine, which often led to us learning different things from one another. Completing those senseless assignments in the summer time taught me to do research for myself, to have the facts. Not to mention the sheer amount knowledge, very useful knowledge I gained. I’m addicted to it now, I must admit.
Now, let’s fast forward. In 2005, one of the friends described above finally hit “bottom” and decided that college was his last resort. To my surprise, I got a phone call from him saying, “I can’t believe school is so easy. [All these different people] are in here studying just like me, and some of them ask me to explain things. Imagine if I thought like this back then…” Yes, he not only received his degree, but graduated magna cum laude.
"Cogito, ergo sum"
No, this is not a reinterpretation of Earl Nightingale’s The Strangest Secret. Rather, it’s an attempt to bridge the gap between motivational rhetoric and real life application.
Let me set the stage. I grew up in Civil Rights, Alabama. Every February we, like much of the nation, relearned how Martin Luther King, Jr. marched for the rights of Southern Blacks, how Malcolm X rallied the troops in the north and how Ms. Rosa Parks jumpstarted the now famous Montgomery Bus Boycott. There were a few other topics that got their month’s worth of attention, and I do mean “a few”, but these were the picks of the litter.
While these glorious moments and figures in history provide us with a sense of overcoming, they really do little for practical motivation, not when every year we’re reminded that “America hates you” and “America owes you”.
This very thought has spread through many communities like cancer breeding laziness and contempt in those who haven’t been able to venture outside and witness, first hand, the successes that exist. Many of my friends who fell by the wayside did so simply because in their minds, it was not worth it to even try because they believed, really believed, that the system is set up against them.
I imagine that I could have developed the same thought process, but many times, while my friends were on the street enjoying each other’s company, I was sent away to summer camp. Or I was involuntarily enrolled in the free art program offered in another neighborhood’s community center. Often times, I was even given assignments to complete during the summer vacation!!! Imagine that, an 11 year old kid, in the house during the summer reading encyclopedias because he has to have his assignment completed before mom returns from work.
What I didn’t notice then was that being left in an art class in a neighborhood of “unfamiliars” forced me to build confidence in myself. Going to summer camp allowed me to interact with people whose lives were completely different from mine, which often led to us learning different things from one another. Completing those senseless assignments in the summer time taught me to do research for myself, to have the facts. Not to mention the sheer amount knowledge, very useful knowledge I gained. I’m addicted to it now, I must admit.
Now, let’s fast forward. In 2005, one of the friends described above finally hit “bottom” and decided that college was his last resort. To my surprise, I got a phone call from him saying, “I can’t believe school is so easy. [All these different people] are in here studying just like me, and some of them ask me to explain things. Imagine if I thought like this back then…” Yes, he not only received his degree, but graduated magna cum laude.
"Cogito, ergo sum"
// posted by Distracted @ 5:56 AM 
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Well said. I wish that this could be read by every young person and every parent. If only, our young black boys and girls could understand early that the world owes them nothing. If only, our young back boys and girls could understand early that the thoughts they entertain could make such a difference. If only, there were more parents who would force their children to do positive and different things to broaden their horizons and push them out of their comfort zones. It's through those experiences that confidence, ambition, hunger for knowledge and character are instilled in us, and success is inevitably bred by us.
# posted by 
: 8:00 AM
: 8:00 AM
Well put! I like where your head is. This is very thought provoking and quite true in many instances... I too have recently returned back to school and can definitely relate to your point of view and that of "your friend". Thanks for sharing...and keep it coming!
Oh yeah... and I LOVE the closing! (nice touch!)
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Oh yeah... and I LOVE the closing! (nice touch!)
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