Thankful on Thanksgiving...
I am thankful to both the LIVING and the DEAD that affected my life...
CAPS denote my own writing style. I am NOT screaming. focus on the substance and not the form!
THE LIVING
1. To Almighty GOD... for blessings beyond measures... for turning negatives into positives and for turning enemies into friends or footstools.
2. My BABIES(Bran, Trish, and Thalia)... No words...
3. To amazing and unconditional FRIENDS (like ASR, Aldyn B, Ellis H., Patrick, P., Reed, Zettie etc.) I LOVE YOU FOREVER... We may not be perfect, but we are talented and wonderfully made... my best friends are friends for life.
4. To all pseudo friends, acquaintances and some rare FB friends... Life is short... be thankful for WHAT YOU STILL HAVE (people, things and even your sanity)... b/c NOTHING.... I repeat, NOTHING is effing guaranteed to be there tomorrow. I am not accepting new FB friends, so if you're a friend of mine on Facebook, be THANKFUL too (smile).
5. Jonathan Laurince - You're a very good and wise man and a true forgiving cousin.
THE DEAD and NEARLY DEAD
1. A lot of giants are gone and a lot of fools are on Earth... I'm thankful for folks like Dr. King, Malcom x, Nelson Mandela, Mother Theresa, Maya Angelou, Rosa Parks and others that make us want to believe that some of us can be 100% selfless.
2. MY LATE MOTHER AND AUNT MARIE... POWERFUL LADIES and SISTERS.... thanks for catalyzing my entrepreneurial genes... I learned about the power of entrepreneurship from them as a young boy. VERY CLEAN-NATURED, decent and wise people. Beautiful women. Gosh, I miss 'em!
3. MY LATE BROTHER - we had sibling rivalry as children but became loving brothers at the end. People took advantage of you like they did of my Dad b/c your heart was TOO PURE, and while I share some of that pureness, I'm more of a BUSINESSMAN... I learn that PEOPLE can be ruthless and thus NEED TO BE CHARGED for work rendered. Nothing personal. Just business... I miss you and thankful to have shared what I shared with you.
4. GERALDINE - you were my most loving and supportive cousin... I miss and love you so much. I am thankful to have known you and miss you dearly
5. MY FATHER
Just tears. You gave me a love for education or knowledge acquisition. Something that I have lived and will die for and one of my best traits. The freedom to stand and walk with my head up high and speak my mind. A love for my race and Blackness. You were always the strongest man in the World to me as a child, and while as a pastor and disciplinarian our approach might have differed, NO ONE CAN SHARE A STRONGER LOVE than the love I SHARED WITH YOU that I now share with MY SON. Your best asset was your MEMORY and now it's all F*CKED UP. Your humor is still second to none. And your mannerisms the best I will have ever seen... You are the only one that reminded me of Grandma Cici. You're the male version of her. So, lastly, I am THANKFUL to have met MY GRANDMA quite a few times before she died, and to have TRIED HER HOT COCOA... the best thing I have ever tasted in my life STILL...
6. Jerome Morgan - for reminding me to think about the flaws of both Blacks and Whites. And to exhort Blacks to love themselves more despite being taught to hate by their hater. I MISS YOU Mr. Morgan and love you immensely.
Lastly, I'm thankful for HEALTH, INTELLIGENCE, DRIVE, CREATIVITY, TALENT, TO HAVE ENOUGH MONEY and LIFE... Thankful TO HAVE PAID ALL MY BILLS and have more in abundance, thankful for wisdom that will have brought me BILLIONS of DOLLARS, and am UNDOUBTEDLY thankful for AMERICA (land of the free and home of the brave)... THANK YOU AMERICA... you were there for me when my country FAILED ME... I intend to continue to GIVE BACK to America and to pave the way for those that are less fortunate especially YOUNG BLACK MEN!
IN A RUSH! ( I stole this one from my late FATHER... as he was always IN A RUSH, even in his letters... Like Father, Like Son!)
Dr. Pete Lorins is the Chief Editor of LorinsPost.com