As much as we welcome editorial notes from all of you faithful readers, we are incredibly grateful to have our dear friend and colleague, OT, always ready and willing to share his thoughts and wisdom with us readers of The Beat Within. For those of you new to the ed note, OT, has been a part of The Beat Within dating back many years, when he was a young contributor in our weekly workshops inside San Mateo County Juvenile Hall. From those days we certainly have come a long way. OT is truly more than a colleague, he is a dear and trusted friend, that we have plenty of love and respect for. Before we get to OT, we want to take this moment to welcome you all to yet another powerful double issue, 23.43/44, of writing and art from inside juvenile hall and beyond. Enjoy the ride, it’s one of a kind! OT!
We would like to welcome back you readers to another double dose of good medicine, the one and only The Beat Within. This is OT, kicking it live for you readers from the dark clouds of the Central American City of Managua, Nicaragua. It’s been raining a lot here lately, matter of fact storming, and it has flooded certain areas of the city. It has mainly flooded badly built neighborhoods, ‘causing mud slides leaving some people homeless without their homes or personal belongings.
Even though the rain has pounded our rough and rugged terrain here, it hasn’t been like Hurricane Mitch (back in 1998), and I would like to extend my condolences to all families that have lost a loved one during these Hurricanes, flooding and earthquakes, especially those most recently affected by Hurricane Michael in Florida.
As we see the death toll rising during the natural disasters that seem to be happening all over the world, that may be one of my least concerns. It’s always good to be prepared, but you don’t expect or hope to expect for those things to happen, you know what I mean? Those things are usually out of our control, and when Mother Nature strikes, well she strikes without any warning.
While, preparation is a must for the unexpected, preparation is a must for the expected as well. Many of you know what the consequences are for some of your actions. For example, stealing, hustling, selling dope, gang-banging, all carry mandatory sentences in Juvenile Hall, in the Adult Prison System, as well as the chances for you of seeing your local hospital for a gun-shot wound, or stab wound increase significantly.
Many of you pack guns, so in case your enemies try to jump you or shoot at you, you are prepared for the worst. It’s simple mathematics, right? We prepare ourselves mentally, by getting high, doing drugs, drinking alcohol, and you know many of us that are wrapped up in this lifestyle don’t tend to think too far ahead beyond our future because if we did we would realize the damage we are actually doing to ourselves, our loved ones and to our communities.
Now, I’m not trying to talk smack to any of you, or act like I know how you think, but trust me that I have been in your shoes before. Matter fact, not only do we probably like some of the same style Jordan’s or Air Max’s or Air Forces, but I have worn those same Bob Barker’s you are wearing right now. I have worn those same rubbery slippers that you use to go shower with, and that you use to walk around in right now.
I have used those same shoe-lace-less shoes, that look like something in between a Chuck Taylor, or a Tony Hawk type skater model, and they are all black, or black and white. I sat in The Beat Within classes writing some of the same things you write about and sat next to peers that wrote about the same things you write about also.
You see history repeats itself and it’s true because I’m thirty-three years old and God has blessed me to live long enough to see it first-hand. You guys may feel alone, or think you are alone, but you have no idea how many individuals have been sitting in that same cell that you currently reside in. You have no idea how many other young adults have slept in the same room, used the same showers, and wore those same draws.
I mean think about that for a few minutes. Look around you. Look at your peers. If you go to school in Juvenile Hall, why don’t you ask your teacher how long he or she has been there. You guys are not the pioneers of this thug lifestyle. You didn’t start up the hood and most of you didn’t create your gang. Don’t feel like you have the responsibility to uphold the lifestyle for the next generations to come.
If you have any sense of family values, what about upholding your family name? Why not make your name respected in the business industry, or in a positive way in your community?
And if you come from a family that the gang affiliation runs deep from generations back and you are one of those young adults that have seen first-hand people getting shot, your dad or uncle in prison, your mother in prison, your brothers are fighting cases, you have to look at that as motivation to not be like them.
Why don’t you be the first person in your family to try something different? Trust me. No one will be mad at you for it. If you happen to be the first pro football player in your family, or the first pro basketball player, the first lawyer, the first doctor, the first guidance counselor, heck even the first car salesman, for you young entrepreneurs that like to sell and make good money.
Don’t be afraid to try something different. Don’t be afraid of success, but more importantly don’t be afraid of failure. Failing on purpose, which is what you are doing now, because you feel like you can’t be successful, is not an option.
Now failing because you tried to be successful, believe me folks, that’s all but acceptable. We are all going to fail at something, and even maybe at everything that you try for the first time. That’s called LEARNING. You have to learn first by trial and error.
So, you tried hustling illegally and it didn’t work, then try hustling legally. Why do you think you see all these guys rapping and singing now a days? Don’t no one want to sell dope forever. You know why? The money might be good but getting caught and spending your life in jail is not worth the price you have to pay.
Even if it’s just three years, or five years, that’s five years of your life that you will never get back. Money comes and goes. You spend $30 on lunch and you will recuperate that on your next pay day, but you can’t get out from doing ten years and say “yeah, I’m about to go make up for lost time.” You might be in shape physically, you might feel young, but don’t fool yourself, you are getting old and time doesn’t rewind for nobody.
So, don’t be afraid to dream, don’t be afraid to try something different, but best of all prepare yourselves for your future. Educate yourself now, so you can be on top later. Business empires are not built over night. It takes time, dedication, sacrifice and hard work. Look at all the time that you have dedicated right now to the system, or to drugs, or to your gang. Just imagine all the time you would have spent working and studying to build your business, you could have been making some serious money right now.
Time doesn’t wait for anybody, so start preparing. This life is all about preparing for the challenges that lay ahead. Don’t prepare yourself to keep living that same life you’ve been living, it’s not going to get you nowhere. Prepare yourself for a change, instead. Prepare yourself so you can prosper. I believe in you. Do not let me down.
One love to everybody. OT is signing out! The Beat keeps going and going…strong!