Forgive Me. This post has nothing to do with our current President. Sorry, OBAMA FANATICS.
I want to address something that I have come to understand with age. I am not old and wise yet, but I have noticed that the human race in its entirety is more impressionable during its adults years than at any other stage of life.
Consider your childhood. Was it not spent in constant struggle to set yourself apart from others? Whether in sheer rebellion or utter wit, we always wanted others to notice our unique twists on style, our ever-increasing vocabulary, or our lack of regard for anyone or anything at all.
Yes, some of us would assume the most pessimistic lifestyles, while others would gloat in their over-indulgence of all things positive, or inspiring. The latter, the more annoying of the bunch.
So, I choose the symbol of the African American power couple to depict the shift in paradigms that come with age. As adults, we are so concerned with keeping up with the proverbial "Joneses" at all costs. Don't get me wrong; however, this can be a good thing. Especially if the Joneses are great upstanding people who work hard and have a whole lot of integrity.
As adults, we put away trying to pave our own ways. Instead, we set out to research the roads which have already been paved and build new cities around them. I know personally, that I have several mentors of whom I try to emulate.
If you are trying to get promoted on your job, would you not look at the footsteps of your colleague with the most seniority? Do we not follow the footsteps of people in power, or better yet, our religious leaders?
How many times have you picked up a guide to the better things in life by people like Oprah, or a fitness manual by the person with the best looking body to date?
On a more serious note, I wish to address the thug mentality that is plaguing our youth today. You knew it was coming. In an effort to be the biggest and baddest thug on the street, our black men are most often inspired by hip hop artists that glorify and egg on this particular lifestyle. But if one were to take a closer look, he would find that his favorite artists that used to "sling crack rock on the block" is no longer a thug, but a remnant of what used to be his past. Rappers like the infamous JAY-Z prove my point. He talks about his slinging rock days in the present as a business man who understood my theory. The only way to make the type of money he made, and keep it is to grow up and become a business man. All of the rappers that talk about how much of a thug they are, are not thugs at all. Its impossible to be a gangster and an industry tycoon at the same time without doing jail time.
You mean to tell me that Snoop Dogg is a true thug and just happens to be able to hold down a conference room at the same time? No, it is merely a manufactured image of his previous life relived on camera over and over again.
So, eventually America's thugs realize the need to grow up and put away childish nonsense in order to stay out of jail even if that means working a nine to five. Sadly, some never grow out of this quest to "fight the power" and remain in the streets on the run at all times in a circle that leads them right back to the same block until they get caught.
The only way up is to follow the leader. The leader who appears to be getting the most out of life. He who has moved beyond the rat race to achieve his dream. But it isn't easy. Easy does not enter into adult life.
I rest my case...
WE ARE MORE IMPRESSIONABLE AS ADULTS!
