I cried

That might sound strange coming from a Marine. But I have the gift of tears.

Often, my role as a leader carries me into the unknown. I am reminded of the quote that managers live in the realm of the known and that real leadership often lives in the realm of the unknown. Sometimes when I am overwhelmed, it seems as if God, themselves, pull me away with a good movie. This weekend there were four. That 8 hours was important for me. The movies always are the type that connects me to my humanity and reminds me of the work to which I am called. I say that it seems to come from God because it is not my intention.

On Friday night, after a long Friday, I sat down for dinner and thought I would turn a movie on. To my surprise, there was “A Night in Miami”. A movie that put Malcolm X, Jim Brown, Muhammed Ali, and Sam Cooke in the same hotel after Muhammed Ali beat Sonny Liston in February of 1964. They took a few liberties but it spoke to the strength and possibility that is wrapped up in friendship and collaboration. It made me look at a new friendship through an entirely different lens. Understanding that God brings those who need you, those who stand equal to you, and those who may stand above you. I welcome that young king, Dexter A. Powell, Jr. into my life. His book Young King, Take Your Stand and his writing skill have been an enormous blessing already. We will be doing some joint ventures and also promoting his contributions to the kingdom.

The second and third movies caught me totally off guard. Meaning I never would have watched them by title or the cast. Both movies were about relationships. They both reminded me that nobody gets through this life unscathed. We all have our trauma that we must grow through. I was reminded that we all need a guide at some time or another and that needing a guide doesn’t make me less, and, being a guide does not make me more. It is a privilege to be both.

Then the last movie brought me to tears. With my heart filled with purpose, community, and hope, another movie popped up. I looked at the clock and realized I had just enough time to watch this movie and still make it to our worship service this morning so I clicked it on. This movie, along with a workshop I attended on Saturday with Trische` Duckworth, reminded me of the trauma of my community, the trauma of my people. It reminded me that healing was the goal. It reminded me that dialog is absolutely critical in bringing different sides together and that healing is not really possible without both sides coming to the table. I was reminded just how much power is in the words, “I am sorry”! The name of the movie is American Skin.

I guess you are probably wondering the purpose of this post. Well, to be honest, my heart is full towards this community. I have been saying that I was going to cast this vision for quite some time. My friend Melvin Parson, We the People Opportunity Farm, reminded me this holiday season of just how long this vision has been cooking. He said to me, right before Kwanzaa, man you have been talking about Kwanzaa, MLK Day, and Black History month as a jumping-off point for years. So this is the jumping-off point. Today, I burn the ships and give myself no retreat. We come to Raise Royalty!

We are going to do a lot more news features this year. I am personally going to do more blogging. I thank the young king Dexter A. Powell, Jr. for this new freedom. We realize that people don’t read as much as they use to. But that should not stop us from making the vision plain. In order to win this war of community, in order to raise royalty, we have to fight personal battles, battles of purpose, wisdom, discipline, love, and stewardship. The five battles of dysfunctions: the absence of trust, the fear of conflict, the lack of commitment, the avoidance of accountability, and the inattention to results, must be waged. The three deserts of pseudo-community, chaos, and emptiness will have to be crossed and then the canyon of the five questions: The Readiness Canyon, Are We Prepared for Relationships? The Connection Canyon, Are We Willing to Focus on Others? The Trust Canyon, Can We Build Mutual Trust? The Investment Canyon, Are We Willing to Invest in Others? And the Synergy canyon, Can We Create Win-Win Relationships? We can bridge those canyons with our personal victories of purpose, wisdom, discipline, love, and stewardship.  We can find ourselves in this paradise.  This paradise of royalty, this paradise of true community.

Mentor2Youth, bridging the opportunity gaps, cultivating purpose through service: the whole child, the whole community lifelong learners.

Darryl L. Johson, Executive Director, Mentor2Youth