No Dress Rehearsal, And We Get Only One Performance!
I am not a preacher, and so this will not be a sermon. It is my testimony to what life has taught me about the importance of knowing and living my purpose in this one-time performance I get here on Earth. My purpose has been to help and serve others, to lead in advocacy for those who need someone on their side, and it is has been my way of life since I was a teenager on the South Side of Chicago. It has also included being a good son, brother, uncle, parent, and friend.
When I became a mature adult, life’s bumps, bruises, and “detour signs” taught me to be vigilant about my wellbeing and ever ready to quickly regroup after temporary setbacks. To fulfill my purpose, I had to be here. Fulfilling my purpose continues to depend on me owning my steps and decisions that, while not guaranteeing my time on stage will go on, surely tilts the odds more in my favor. I must be willing to do the work to attain and then sustain good mental, physical, and spiritual health. I must strive to live well! If I am to be of any good to anyone, I must first take care of my mind, body, and soul.
My life has been given back to me many times. As a Black child I had to first survive being born, then I survived being electrocuted at age 18 months when my rascal-self bit into a live-wire, then being nearly shot while a well-trained Chicago police officer calmly asked me to not reach for my wallet as his handgun was inches from my nose, then being nearly shot again but this time by three poorly-trained soldiers with AR-15’s while I was working in Monrovia, Liberia in 1997, and then there were those three bouts of Atrial Fibrillation. And still I rise. My doctors tell me, I am in better health and shape today than most men ten years my junior. I thank my God each morning I awake, and I then work on myself daily. I am far from perfect, but I keep at it!
I am sharing this slice of my story with any Black men reading this to stress that to be there for your spouse, your life partner, your child or grandchildren, your Ride or Die’s, you must first be here, well, and able. So please, if you won’t do it for yourself, then do it for them…Know Your Numbers. See a primary physician at least once a year and be honest with the doc when you do. Eat to live, and not the other way around. To stay fit inside and outside, keep it moving, and stay engaged with the things that are both good to and for you.
As Black men, the odds are often stacked against us, but we also hold some aces in our hands. We can get in front of the statistics and take better control of our health. Heart disease, strokes, colon cancer, prostate cancer are largely preventable, and usually survivable when detected EARLY.
If you are reading this, then you are still on stage, your performance not cancelled. Don’t let down the people who care about you and who are here to see you shine on stage. Take charge today.
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