Great Movie!

I finally saw "12 Years a Slave," the Academy Award Best Picture Winner.  It is a great movie, but tough to watch.  I was sitting on the edge of my seat the entire time, knowing that unspeakable atrocities could be/would be in every scene.

We've come a long way, for sure.

What is most amazing is that a movie displaying so much truth about this hellaciously evil time in our history, would be recognized as the best picture of the year.

I was reminded as recently as in today's newspaper, that people are oftentimes sent to prison now for mistreating animals, and yet not long ago, when people were savagely beaten, with the flesh ripped from their bodies, just cause, there were no consequences whatsoever.

NONE.

I was also reminded of the slave labor that built this country into the great land that it is, and how the effects of that warped, single-minded, single-benefactor system are still very much evident today.

How can you not be advantaged when you reap the benefits of centuries of preferential treatment in land ownership and jobs?

How can folks, in good conscience, fight against affirmative action (which amounts to a bone being thrown our way), when they have been the recipients of untold advantages for generations?

So, as much as I appreciated the making of this movie, and the spreading of this message, it brings an uneasiness about my writings about forgiveness to the forefront.

I know.

I know.

We must forgive these unspeakable, hateful, vengeful, murderous people/episodes in our history, but it's no easy task when our children are still being gunned down for posing 'imaginary' threats to murderous, gun-toting state-sponsored vigilantes.

Yes.

We've come a long way, but dear God, we still have miles to go.

The Power of a Tweet

I'm not a fan of most social media.  I'm not on Facebook, and wouldn't know how to tweet if my life depended on it. But, when used for good, these tools can provide the platform to become a powerful force.

Check out an example of this below.

http://www.salon.com/2014/05/16/saudi_arabian_boy_tweets_about_hospitalization_and_it_became_the_most_retweeted_message_ever_in_saudi_arabia/?source=newsletter

Go Boise State!

They petitioned the NCAA to help a homeless recruit, and amazingly, the NCAA granted a waiver.

Go NCAA, too!

http://www.aol.com/article/2014/05/14/boise-state-gets-ok-to-help-homeless-player/20886059/?icid=maing-grid7%7Cmain5%7Cdl33%7Csec1_lnk3%26pLid%3D47675

Hat tip to Forrest.

The Best is Yet to Come

This proves it.

http://www.upworthy.com/know-any-overachievers-that-are-upset-over-not-yet-doing-something-great-show-them-this?c=upw1

Happy Mother's Day!

To all of you fabulous Moms out there, here's hoping your day was filled with lots of love and fond memories.

To Houran, the newest mom in my world, congratulations on your first's Mother's Day.  Leila is one blessed little lady to have you as her mom.  If it's possible, you're even more amazing at motherhood than I thought you would be.

To Lupe, thank you for the gift of Milu.  What a darling sweetie pie!  I could not be prouder of you and the example that you're setting for her as a strong woman who stands up for what is right.

To Cara, thank you for Zadie.  Thank you, too, for welcoming me into your world and allowing me the absolute joy of being a grandma.  I'm bursting with pride at the way you are raising Zadie, as I'm watching her grow up into this amazing little lady.

Happy Mother's Day!

With love,

Faye/Aunt Faye/Grandma Faye 

Annual College Visits

New York Times article -

(http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/11/opinion/sunday/advice-for-a-troubled-teen.html?hpw&rref=opinion&_r=0)

This article in today's paper, took me back to my first year as principal.  I had four boys - two African-American, and two Latino - who were natural leaders.  They ruled the playground.  Unfortunately, they were not always leading in the right direction.  In fact, most times they were spearheading the trouble.

Although these boys were only 5th and 6th graders, I knew they were already at a crossroad in their lives.  I decided that we would take them on two field trips.  First, to the local Juvenile Hall, then to Stanford University.  I told them their choices would determine whether they would be headed to jail or to college.  Interestingly enough, after years and lots of effort, we were never granted permission to visit Juvenile Hall because of privacy concerns.  But we did visit Stanford.  We went there because Ben was a student, and I wanted these boys to see someone who looked like them on this college campus.

We expanded the program to three carloads the next year, and then after that we decided to take a busload to experience college for a day.

As I said, we began with Stanford, with Ben as our tour guide, then we added UC Berkeley, UC Davis, and Sac State (our local university).  We took the trips in late Spring, allocating a day for each school.

These trips required dedicated chaperones.  I was always blessed with a great staff who was willing to do whatever they could to help our students.  Cathy took over the planning, and bought incredible organizational skills and a cohesiveness to these excursions.  Her guidance and help were invaluable.

We went on these trips every year that I was principal.

One of the most memorable ones was a visit to UC Berkeley where my dear friend Ray was teaching.  He invited our kids to sit in on one of his classes.  They listened to the discussion for about a half hour, and then Ray invited our students to comment and/or ask questions.  To my utter amazement, they had lots to contribute and they did great!  I was so proud of them.

On another visit to Berkeley, there were about a half dozen protestors who were living in a grove of trees that was scheduled for demolition to expand the athletic center.  Our kids were fascinated by their commitment to their cause, and by the buckets they used to send down their bodily fluids.  Set up nearby, was a table with baked goods that these folks offered our students.  We suspected they were made with illegal herbs and quickly moved our kids along.  All I needed was for a student to eat a brownie laced with marijuana.  Thankfully, we escaped incident, and left with just a quirky story to tell.

I'd like to say these college visits made an impact, but truth be told, I don't know.

So much of the fruit of what we do as educators is not reaped until years later,  so I hold out hope that  of the scores of kids who went on these special field trips, it helped someone.

There was no appreciable difference in the behavior of the first four boys, and at least two of them chose the wrong path.  I'm glad it was a while before I got that news.  It would probably have impacted our decision to continue to do this year after year.

Although I don't regret the time, energy, effort and money it took to do this, it saddens me when I think of the lost potential.  How many kids would have had a greater chance if they had the support they needed?  How many bright, talented kids, who, in spite of our best efforts, still fell by the wayside?  Was there more we/I could have done?

As an educator, these are the questions that haunt me.

Vodka . . . Really?

Here's some pretty crazy options for household cleaning, including vodka to clean mattresses.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/05/08/cleaning-hacks-spring-cleaning-shortcuts_n_5242987.html

My College Experience

I went to an HBCU (an Historically Black College and University), Florida A & M University in Tallahassee.  I followed Forrest there, and Terry followed me.  Terry was a year older than me, but he went to the Air Force first, for four years, and then entered FAMU.

I will forever be grateful to Forrest for making it his life's mission to get me out of China, Texas (our hometown) and off to his alma mater.  The fact that he was able to persuade our Mom to let me go was nothing short of a miracle.

Prior to leaving for college, I had only traveled out of state once as a very young child, when we went to San Francisco to visit my mother's brother, her only sibling, and then a couple of other times when we visited relatives in Louisiana.

Leaving home was a big deal.

HUGE.

Folks in my neck of the woods didn't leave home.

But with Forrest's help, I left Texas, heading first to Miami, where he was living. We then drove north for 500 miles to my new home at FAMU.

I was . . .

Excited.

Scared.

Anxious.

Worried.

Thrilled.

These were just some of the emotions I was experiencing with each passing mile of that trip.

There were no visits to the campus prior to entering school to check it out.  Forrest gave it his stamp of approval, and that was good enough for me.  I knew he wouldn't steer me wrong.

The campus was/is beautiful.  It sits on rolling hills and it's luscious greenery is a warm, welcoming site.  It has a down home flavor, a large dose of southern hospitality.

In contrast, China, Texas is barren on so many levels, with a population of 1100 folks. When I arrived on FAMU's campus with an enrollment of 5000, and all of them Black, it was a shock to my system.  A pleasant one, but a shock nonetheless.  I had never seen so many black folks in all of my life.  There were 10 black kids in my graduating class of 100.

This trip down memory land was prompted by an article I just read in the New York Times, by Charles Blow, one of the columnists, where he was reminiscing about his experiences at Grambling State University, in Louisiana, also an HBCU, and how nurturing it was.

Here's the link:  http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/08/opinion/blow-in-college-nurturing-matters.html?hp&rref=opinion&_r=0

My experience mirrored his.

My professors had a vested interest in my success.  If I succeeded, they succeeded. If I failed, they had failed me, and that was not going to happen.

It was refreshing on a social level, too.  As I imagined it is at an all-boys' or all-girls' school, there were things we had in common that didn't require an explanation or discussion.  We could launch into conversations without fear of alienating anyone, or offending someone with our views.  Not to imply we were monolithic in the way we saw the world, but our common denominator helped us to move more easily pass our differences as we navigated this new world.

I wanted very much for Ben and Frankie to attend an HBCU, but they had other ideas.  To be fair, the world that they were raised in was radically different from mine. I'm not at all sure they would have been comfortable in an all-black setting.

Truthfully, that bothered/bothers me.

In our quest to send them to the best schools, did we inadvertently rob them of rich cultural experiences?

That's one of the many lingering questions that I don't have the answer to.  Or maybe I do, but I don't like what it is, so I keep it in the question column.

Side note - This is the 40th anniversary of my high school graduation.

Good gravy!

Anyway.

Thanks for taking this walk down memory lane with me.

I hope all is well in your world.

Can I Hear an Amen?

I know some folks who might not appreciate this.

That's OK.

I love it!

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/05/07/characters-from-bible-really-look-like-_n_5281519.html?utm_hp_ref=black-voices&ir=Black%20Voices

Singing One of Frank's Songs

Incredible!

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/05/05/angelina-jordan-fly-me-to-the-moon_n_5267341.html

Another "WOW!"

Check out this young lady's amazing achievement and note why her parents encouraged their kids to take college courses while still in high school.

http://www.theroot.com/articles/culture/2014/05/meet_the_16_year_old_who_will_graduate_college_before_high_school.html?wpisrc=newsletter_jcr:content&mc_cid=d578c0c540&mc_eid=ac9b7800d4

A Tribute to His Mom

This is just over a minute long, but it is oh so touching.

http://www.theroot.com/articles/culture/2014/05/watch_kevin_durant_s_emotional_mvp_speech_to_his_mother.html?wpisrc=newsletter_jcr:content&mc_cid=d3ba4a4451&mc_eid=ac9b7800d4

Channeling Chris Tucker

These guys end their dance with some Chris Tucker moves.

Really cute.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/05/02/michael-fassbender-dancing-blurred-lines_n_5256372.html?utm_hp_ref=entertainment

How to Choose a Winner

Check out the link below to an interesting documentary on one of the biggest disappointments in football drafts, the 1998 one involving Peyton Manning vs. Ryan Leaf for the top draft position.   This examines the art and science of choosing a winner.

It's 12 minutes long.

Fascinating.

http://www.nytimes.com/video/us/100000002859989/picking-a-winner-the-1998-nfl-draft.html?playlistId=100000002148738

Beautiful Black Ballerinas

Simply stunning!

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/05/02/black-ballerinas-misty-copeland-pointe-magazine-june-july-2014_n_5255148.html

What Doesn't Kill You Makes You Stronger

This is an article about the young woman who starred in "Precious."  We should all take a page from her book.  She has a powerful message.

http://www.salon.com/2014/05/02/gabourey_sidibe_dont_ask_me_why_im_confident_ask_rihanna/

A Really Smart Athlete

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/tim-morehouse/meet-john-urschel-the-sma_b_5248272.html?utm_hp_ref=black-voices&ir=Black%20Voices

Black Barbershops

I love black barbershops.  I spent lots of time in them with Ben and Frankie growing up.  The conversations are unusually interesting, and in an hour to two, the world's problems are typically solved.

Jimmy Kimmel visited one recently to get the guys' take on the Donald Sterling debacle.  Check it out below.

http://blackamericaweb.com/2014/05/01/kimmel-hits-up-black-barbershop-to-discuss-donald-sterling-watch/

Cheers to Tremendous Academic Success!

This kid is headed for more great things, after achieving a 5.0 GPA and 2100 on the SAT.

Incredible!

Bravo to Ellen for showcasing this gifted young man.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/04/30/ivy-league-ellen-degeneres_n_5237288.html?utm_hp_ref=black-voices

Seeing Without Glasses

This quick video shows you what to do to see something in a pinch if you've forgotten your glasses or contacts.

Truly amazing!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OydqR_7_DjI#t=155