It's funny how people don't really understand that anything worth having requires work. Success takes work. Friendships require work to maintain. Relationships require a lot of work. Marriage, degrees, anything that comes with a title takes work. Blood, sweat, and tears type work. "I put my all in" type work. "I gave it everything I have" type work. "I wake up early and go to bed late" type work. I just don't get it. I do get it, actually. Things you don't work for, you don't value. They are disposable. So, people and relationships become disposable when you don't work for it. Things of little value can be discarded without second thought. What do you value? Who do you value? The answer to both questions is what or whom did you work for?
Remember what made you start in the first place. Brush yourself off and keep moving forward. There will be setbacks. There will be detours. There will be moments of doubt, but there will be triumphs. There will be victories. There will be joy. Persevere. Endure. You're closer than you know. Keep on keepin' on.
I've probably had more conversations about race in America more this week than I have had in a long time. I've been reminded of America's dark history that we still refuse to confront. I've seen pictures that resemble the lynch mobs of 1919. I've seen things reminiscent of Jim Crow and Reconstruction, and it saddens me. In 2017, we are seeing the same racial atrocities that occurred centuries ago. It seems like we are moving backward. We cannot afford for history to repeat itself. Peace usually follows war. There is no need for peace when there is no violence and chaos. As much as we may not understand why all these things are happening, maybe this is necessary for us to finally address America's original sin; not greed, but racism. Maybe this is the catalyst for the change we want and desire. Maybe this is America's necessary evil to achieve perfect peace.