Me and my ignorant ways was walking to Wawa one day. I noticed a homeless man sitting outside. No, I was not sure if he was homeless or not, but he looked homeless to me. He had no sign and he was not asking for money. As I approached the door, he stopped me. He looked me in my eyes, and asked, “Why are you here?” I nonchalantly responded saying, “I’m getting a bag of chips”. He said “No, why are you on this planet? What has God planned for you? I found myself staring back into his bloodshot eyes. I tried responding but I was concealed in my own thoughts. “Why am I alive?”, I thought to myself.  Standing in complete silence, he got up, smiled at me and said, “God bless you”.

That day I judged a less fortunate man, only to realize my own faults. I like to call my generation, generation x, x meaning unknown. Generation x, the generation where ignorance is bliss. Generation x, the generation where we live fast and die young. Generation x, where gaining knowledge and intellect isn’t cool. Generation x, where we are strangers to the image in the mirror. I feel like that is the biggest issue with the youth of today. We lack self-love. Did you know that 20% of teenagers suffer from depression? Did you know that the third cause of death in teens is suicide? It’s sad to hear this statistic. How can such a beautiful human being feel the urge to end the life they have been brought into. Death is NEVER the answer, especially when you are so young. I feel like this is all a test, God’s little experiment. You shouldn’t let one minor setback ruin your future. There is an enchanting world out there waiting for you. No one is born for no reason. We have a purpose in life and it is up to us to find out what exactly that purpose is. I see so much of my people out there struggling to find rose pedals, when there is a bouquet of flowers resting inside yourself.

I look at the street culture of my generation and I realize it is so much easier to point fingers then to point at yourself and recognize your own faults. Love yourself. Once you love yourself, you will put the gun down and love those around you. I also feel that we want to embrace ourselves but we are so worried about what others will think. Society is so twisted. Instead, most of us hate our life and take the anger out on someone else’s life. Don’t there life matter as much as yours? Sometimes I wonder how black on black crime even started. Did we just wake up hating each other? Is it because black people was always taught to hate themselves and hate there people, and glorify there master “the white man”? Is that why white people are considered the superior race? Is that why black people still seem to depend on white people so much? This all traces back to simple word, love. Can you imagine how different the world will be if racism and discrimination never existed. Yes, racism is still alive and still an issue in the urban community. This is why I urge the street culture to build the core within so that no negative influences will break you down. My father once told me that if someone walks up to me and pushes me down, that is there fault. Although, if he comes back 2 weeks later and I’m still on the ground, that is my fault. My generation loves to oppose police officers when they shoot down innocent civilians, but turn around and perform the same terrorism in the community. It starts within.

The world is a battlefield.  Will you quit or will you pick up your head and keep walking? Ladies, you are beautiful, don’t let a no good man make you a no good woman. Don’t let society dictate your beauty. Its only one “you” in the world, find out who that person is. The biggest battle a man faces is with himself. Once you except who you are, I promise nothing but happiness will follow. So for all the youth out there thinking that there world is about to end, trust me, it has just began. Keep the faith.