by Joshua Patterson, A.K.A. The Kronikler
“Don’t allow your current circumstances to be excuses for failure, but reasons for success.”
– Joshua Patterson, Thinking Words, Volume One
My father said something to me in my youth that, to this day, is more profound to me than I think he knew when he said it. He was describing the learning curve he faced in raising my brother, sister, and I. You see, each of us, with regards to our personality, are unique. I’ve always been the cool and level-headed one, my brother is the fireball, and my sister is right in-between; Ice, fire, and water. Each of us, according to my father, taught him a different virtue throughout the process of our upbringing. My laid-back nature inspired his initiative to raise my consciousness in a world that exploits kindness; My brother’s edgy and hard-headed nature trained my father in patience; My sister’s maturity in a radically changing world consumed with information compelled my father to operate as a guiding light in her quest for identity.
I say these things to say that my father was able to achieve the uncanny feat of finding a balance in successfully and productively raising each of his children. To me, he is not a great father simply because he is physically present; He has been present in heart and soul as well. He did not detach himself from us simply because we do not share all of his character qualities or his talents; He did not dismiss himself from us because of our failures and shortcomings. My father is a great father because he committed himself to attending the seeds he had planted, and reaped personal growth himself. He converted a daunting responsibility into a launching pad, elevating his future as he himself rose to the occasion.
This is a blog about using apparent challenges as stepping stones. It’s a popular theme that is well articulated in literature and popular culture, as is evident in Suzanne Collins’s Hunger Games series. What gave Katniss — the tribute from the horridly underprivileged community known as District 12 — an edge in the titular Games was the fact that, unlike her more advantaged competitors, she knew “what it meant to be hungry” (rough paraphrasing from the book). She came from a very poor background where she had to work hard for everything she had earned, a condition that made her a competitive survivalist by nature. This “training”, which she had virtually endured since birth, proved to be an interesting form of adversity that would prepare her for ultimate triumph on the violent and cutthroat platform provided by the Games.
Interestingly, this same “hunger” is evident in the lyrics and mottos of the music industry’s most recognizable faces. With regards to hip-hop culture, figures such as iconic rapper Jay-Z have grown to be associated with the whole process known as “the grind.” This is a man who rose from the drug-infested projects of Brooklyn by using urban poetry to turn tribulation into treasure. Kendrick Lamar, through his critically acclaimed and chart-topping work, discusses social conditions such as racial injustice and the peer pressure of his youth that reflect his political concerns and some of the driving forces behind his tireless ethic. Even in the comedy and film industries you see phenomenal figures like Steve Harvey and Tyler Perry, who both formerly lived in conditions — economically and psychologically — that the average person wouldn’t tolerate. I find it noteworthy that the change they encountered in their lives did not begin with their circumstances, but in fact their perspectives.
Finally, I’d like to cite Bruce Lee as a shining example of the triumph that can emerge from gleaning advantages from disadvantage. Lee was a world-class martial artist, perhaps the greatest of all time, who honestly requires no introduction. People of nearly every culture and every branch of profession have something to say about this man, because he was that influential, both by his physical prowess and the brilliance of his mind. At one point in his life, however, Lee encountered a setback in the form of a back injury that rendered him bedridden for six months. Instead of dismaying over his debilitation, he would use the period to produce writings connected to his philosophical perspectives and Jeet Kun Do, an original martial art propelled by his wisdom. He is notorious for the following quote: “To hell with circumstances; I create opportunities.”
I share all of this to say that what we call our handicap could be our greatest launching pad. All that is required is a change of perspective, and perhaps the proper voice feeding our strides towards excellence. Today’s culture often teaches us to whitewash our shortcomings and inadequacies, embellishing ourselves with presentations and ideas that may be operating as a greater crutch than our actual struggle. Take some different advice for a change; Don’t be deceived by what you see immediately before you, but look higher and rise above.
Catch more outstanding quotes in “Thinking Words, Volume One,” my first publication and a collection of one-hundred original quotes of pure wisdom.