Your true hommies...they help you get better!

Growing up my folks would always remind me that it was a good thing to be alone than in the wrong crowd or wrong company. They would interrogate anyone that would bring home, whether it was a teammate, a classmate, my neighbor Ish, or even the dudes at the church. Their thing was, tell me who your real dawgs are and I’ll tell you who you really are. Growing up in a religious household wasn’t always fun but the life lessons were very rewarding. If wasn’t until I got in some minor trouble that I really took my folks advice to heart. My stepdad would say, If you run with wolves, you will learn how to howl. But, if you associate with eagles, you will learn how to soar to great heights. "A mirror reflects a man's face, but what he is really like is shown by the kind of friends he chooses."

The simple thing is, you become like those you hang out with. I’ve seen many dudes get in trouble and their defense is, I am a product of my environment. There’s a lot of truth to that but I think sometimes we choose who we want to become. We control our destiny, fuck what you’ve heard. I think kids nowadays are so lost because very is an imitator, no one want to take control of their own life and make their own decision.

Back in February I was invited to speak at a youth meeting and some of the kids have no clue as to what or who they want to be. The glitz and the fast life is so attractive because it gets you that immediate attention and instant fame yet the repercussions are life threatening. My advice to them was the less you associate with some people, the more your life will improve. It reduces stress, it negates tensions, it empowers you to a certain extent.

I have always been a perfectionist and I think that’s why I am so complex now. The perfectionist in me plays a major role in deciding my future, who to date, how to dress, how to speak, my behavior, etc. I cannot tolerate mediocrity in others because it will increase my mediocrity. When I look at the Republican Party, they focus solely on positive things. They’re always preaching progressiveness and the need to be an independent entity. Most successful people have this impatience with negative thinking and negative acting people. I am at a point where I try to surround myself with positive minded people and progressing thinkers. 90% of my associates have changed and although some of them disagree with the direction of my life yet I must go on. I cannot stay where they are because my true hommies want me to climb and those that are not helping you climb this ladder, they’re not your true hommies ‘for they want you to crawl. It’s either you’re going to stretch my vision or your choke my dream. And if the ladder is what you’re about, you might as well stay the hell out of my life.

Things to consider (this is what I’ve gathered from various folks who have contributed to my life story):
• Never receive counsel from unproductive people.
• Never discuss your problems with someone incapable of contributing to the solution, because those who never succeed themselves are always first to tell you how. Not everyone has a right to speak into your life. You are certain to get the worst of the bargain when you exchange ideas with the wrong person.
• Don't follow anyone who's not going anywhere. With some people you spend an evening: with others you invest it.
• Be careful where you stop to inquire for directions along the road of life.
• Wise is the person who fortifies his life with the right friendships.