The following program
discusses sensitive issues.
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Parents are
cautioned that some material
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may be too candid
for younger children.
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Welcome to The New Journey,
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a program where
you'll meet real life people,
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with real life testimonies,
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doing real life
ministry for Jesus Christ.
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I'm your host Aaron Chancy,
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come join us on The New Journey.
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We like to welcome you
back to The New Journey
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for the exciting program
that we have in store for you.
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We'd like to thank you, Dwight,
for being on the program today.
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Just for some general
background information,
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if you could tell
us how old you are
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and where you're from?
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Okay, well, I am 28.
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Okay. And I'm
from Toronto, Canada.
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Okay.
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What was it like
growing up in Toronto, Canada
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at a young age?
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Well, I could easily compare it
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to that of your
typical metropolitan city.
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Okay.
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Considering
that Toronto is what,
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the fourth
largest metropolitan city
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in North America.
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Okay.
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You know, in addition to being
the most multicultural city
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in the world.
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Okay.
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Your early home life growing
up in the inner city Toronto,
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what was it like?
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Did you grow up in
a single-parent home
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or a two-parent
home with siblings?
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How was that?
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Well, fortunately for myself
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I actually did grow
up in a two-parent home.
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My parents are actually
still happily married today.
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Amen.
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And they have three boys
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and I'm actually
the oldest of the three.
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Okay.
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That's great that, you know,
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you say that
your mother and father
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are still together
because, of course,
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this day and age
it's so much, you know,
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broken homes and
different things like that.
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Right, last time I read,
I believe the divorce rate,
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especially within
the black community
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is close to 70% right now.
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Oh, wow.
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Yeah, so, yeah, out
of most of my friends,
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I could probably
count on one hand, you know.
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Yeah.
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Of them, how many of our parents
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are still together.
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Yeah, they have a
double parent home.
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Right, exactly.
That's very true.
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Growing up in your household,
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what was the
religious background?
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Well, my mother, she was
born and raised Adventist like,
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you know, her
whole life from back
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when she was in Jamaica
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'cause, yeah, my
mother and father
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both are originally from Jamaica
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and they migrated to Toronto.
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I guess you could say somewhere
between 30-35 years ago.
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Okay. And they
actually did meet in Canada.
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You know, but my father
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he did have somewhat
religious background,
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but he wasn't really
that religious at the time.
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Okay.
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You know, but my
mother was always
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the primary religious one.
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You know, and it
wasn't until I'd say
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when I was
probably about 10 or 11,
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when my father
started coming to the church
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and then he got baptized
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and he's basically
never turned back ever since.
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Oh, great.
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Now he's currently either
the, I believe, he's, yeah,
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he's an elder in the church.
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Okay. He's no longer deacon.
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Okay, amen.
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Growing up in a predominately
Seventh-day Adventist home
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at a young age,
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what was your own
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spiritual life
like for yourself?
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Well, I can't necessarily say
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that I grew up in a
Seventh-day Adventist home
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my whole life.
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Although, my mother
was always Adventist
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because upon
her coming to Canada
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one of her first experiences
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in the
Seventh-day Adventist church
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wasn't really that warm
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or that
welcoming to say the least.
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Wow.
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So she stopped going
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but then she met a
lady on the bus one day
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who was attending
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the Seventh-day
Pentecostal Church.
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Okay.
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And we basically,
that was the church
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I'd actually was
christened into, you know.
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I grew up there,
learned how to play drums,
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everything and it wasn't until
around the time when I was 10
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when 9-10ish when we started
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going back to
the Adventist church.
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But we were always
Sabbath keepers though.
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I've never really
known any other day.
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Okay, okay.
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What were some of
the negative influences
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in your life
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whether in the
home or whether friends?
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What were some of
those influences back
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when you're growing up?
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Some of the negative influences,
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I guess, I could say
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kind of stemmed from
the fact that, you know,
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the devil first and foremost
finds it easy, you know,
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he always finds
things for ideal hands.
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Yeah. You know. Definitely.
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Another thing that, I know,
it kind of came out, I mean,
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it wasn't really
necessarily negative
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but it kind of
ended up being that way,
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was, I found it hard
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because I really loved sports...
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Okay.
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You know,
basketball in particular.
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Yeah.
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And every single
basketball tournament
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or a lot of our exhibition games
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will take place on Saturday.
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You know, also as a result
I would get very discouraged,
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you know what I'm saying
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because I wouldn't
really be able to do
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what I wanted to do, you know,
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and when I looked back on it now
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basketball was like
a safe haven for me.
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Yeah.
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You know, 'cause I
wouldn't find myself
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in near this much
trouble, you know.
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Yeah.
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But, yeah, as the
basketball started,
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as I started realizing
that this was a uphill battle,
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you know, be
Seventh-day Adventist
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and trying to play sports.
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I can relate.
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You know, I definitely,
yeah, the devil definitely find,
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started finding things
for me to do unfortunately.
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Definitely, and we're
gonna talk about those shortly.
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But, you know, you
said something interesting
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which I can
relate on where it seems
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for a lot of
young African-Americans
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basketball, football, sports
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seems to be like
that's the major goal.
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And I remember, for myself,
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growing up
that's the aspirations
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I had basketball, football
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but I always
had an uphill battle
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like you said
dealing with the Sabbath.
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Right.
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And, you know, people will say,
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"Well, what you're
gonna do about the Sabbath?"
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Well, I'm young 11-12,
to me it didn't matter.
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Right. I have my dream.
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I knew what I wanted to do.
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And it seemed like when
those slipped away from me.
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That's one of
the motivating things
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that I started
going downhill with.
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Right.
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And, you know, that
happens, it seems to a lot of us
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because we have
those aspirations
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and we haven't developed
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our own one-on-one
relationship with God,
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and we put all our
energy in the sports.
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And when that doesn't happen,
it's like what else is there.
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Right.
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You know, what do you think
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were some of your
positive influences,
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growing up?
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Some of my positive influence
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is obviously that had
to stem from my parents,
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you know, my father was always
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obviously very
intricately involved,
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you know, in my life
and he was always very,
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I guess you could say
my number one supporter.
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You know, some of my
other positive influence
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is stemmed from church
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and some of the
friends that I had.
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And from young, you know,
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I used to really
love being involved,
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you know, like I was
involved with Pathfinders,
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I used to be the kid that used
to recite all the memory verses
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and things in Sabbath.
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Yeah, yeah, yeah.
So every 13th Sabbath?
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Right, exactly.
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Every 13th Sabbath,
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I definitely couldn't
do that now, I don't think.
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But, yeah, those are some
of my positive influences,
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you know, I used to
love being very involved
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and that's something
that I enjoy even till today.
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Okay, now you said
something interesting
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being that you were involved,
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what do you think
led you to other things
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being that you were
involved in the church,
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so heavily
involved in Pathfinders,
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involved in different events
that were going on in a church
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because often, you know,
I've had people come to me say,
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well, you know, what should
we do for the young people.
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Right.
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And answer is sometimes given,
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I gave that
answer a long time ago
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where I said where they
need, kids need to get involved.
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But the reality is
you're one that, you know,
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got involved
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but still
gravitated to something else.
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Why do you think that
transpired in your life?
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Well, because I
guess I was very involved,
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but on the other hand
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because I guess
I was so involved
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and I couldn't necessarily
always do what I wanted to do
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in particular speaking
to sport... I mean, specify,
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talking about sports.
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Okay.
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I basically felt like
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there was a
feeling of resentment
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towards the church
00:07:55.97\00:07:57.31
and towards the Sabbath
for some time, you know.
00:07:57.34\00:07:58.77
And I guess I could even say
00:07:58.81\00:08:00.14
there was some
form of resentment
00:08:00.18\00:08:02.04
towards even God.
00:08:02.08\00:08:03.41
Because in addition to
the Sabbath issue, you know,
00:08:03.45\00:08:06.55
I'm the first of
three boys, you know,
00:08:06.58\00:08:09.68
and my second brother
has, he's hypomanic bipolar,
00:08:09.72\00:08:15.19
and my baby brother he
has sickle cell anemia,
00:08:15.22\00:08:18.69
you know, so it was like...
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Yeah, so, I mean, it's like
all the reins and all of this,
00:08:20.46\00:08:23.26
everything
basically on me, you know.
00:08:23.30\00:08:24.77
It seems almost
like a whole future
00:08:24.80\00:08:27.27
on the family in a sense,
00:08:27.30\00:08:28.84
you know, it was all on
my shoulders at all times,
00:08:28.87\00:08:30.71
you know.
00:08:30.74\00:08:32.07
And I guess I was just trying
to find some sort of outlet,
00:08:32.11\00:08:34.11
you know.
00:08:34.14\00:08:35.48
Okay.
00:08:35.51\00:08:36.85
How do you think you dealt
with that pressure, you know,
00:08:36.88\00:08:39.05
where it seems like
everything is on you.
00:08:39.08\00:08:41.12
How do you think you
dealt with it in your life?
00:08:41.15\00:08:45.42
Well, it's something
that still follows me
00:08:45.45\00:08:48.22
even till today.
00:08:48.26\00:08:49.59
Okay. You know, truth be told.
00:08:49.62\00:08:50.96
Okay.
00:08:50.99\00:08:52.33
But I find that
00:08:52.36\00:08:55.63
I get a lot of
strength from realizing that,
00:08:55.66\00:08:58.30
you know, diamonds
are built under pressure.
00:08:58.33\00:09:00.57
You know what I'm
saying? Yeah, true.
00:09:00.60\00:09:01.94
Extreme circumstances
00:09:01.97\00:09:03.30
and I just feel that a lot
of my trials and tribulations
00:09:03.34\00:09:05.47
are gonna allow
me to build character
00:09:05.51\00:09:07.74
and to grow more
overall as a human being,
00:09:07.78\00:09:10.98
you know, as an individual.
00:09:11.01\00:09:12.35
Definitely.
00:09:12.38\00:09:13.72
Now, you got
involved in something's
00:09:13.75\00:09:16.32
in what we term "The Streets",
00:09:16.35\00:09:18.59
weapons charges
and things like that,
00:09:18.62\00:09:20.06
talk about those weapons charges
00:09:20.09\00:09:21.79
and some of the other
things you were involved in?
00:09:21.82\00:09:24.46
Well, let's cut
a long story short.
00:09:24.49\00:09:27.56
I guess it was more so,
00:09:27.60\00:09:31.07
in addition to
some of the other issues
00:09:31.10\00:09:32.83
that I was
dealing with internally...
00:09:32.87\00:09:34.20
Okay.
00:09:34.24\00:09:35.57
..like I also I guess
didn't want necessarily
00:09:35.60\00:09:37.54
be a liability, you know,
00:09:37.57\00:09:39.57
to my parents anymore, you know.
00:09:39.61\00:09:43.24
And further what I
mean, when you turn on the TV
00:09:43.28\00:09:46.95
and you see all
these glamorous things,
00:09:46.98\00:09:48.32
you know what I'm saying,
00:09:48.35\00:09:49.68
and now my whole sports outlet
was somewhat really eliminated
00:09:49.72\00:09:52.52
because I was unable
to really play basketball
00:09:52.55\00:09:54.79
'cause I was, you know,
00:09:54.82\00:09:56.16
the Sabbath
issue or what have you.
00:09:56.19\00:09:57.53
Yeah.
00:09:57.56\00:09:58.89
It just felt like...
00:09:58.93\00:10:00.83
I don't know, growing into
it, I basically just felt like
00:10:00.86\00:10:04.10
it was more so, I felt crippled,
00:10:04.13\00:10:08.94
you know what I'm
saying, like being broke
00:10:08.97\00:10:10.64
is basically being
crippled, you know.
00:10:10.67\00:10:12.01
Okay.
00:10:12.04\00:10:13.38
And I was doing the school thing
00:10:13.41\00:10:14.74
or what have you but I
still couldn't really make money
00:10:14.78\00:10:16.11
and a lot of my
other friends, you know,
00:10:16.14\00:10:17.48
who didn't really go to
school when I came back home,
00:10:17.51\00:10:19.28
they could purchase or
get whatever they wanted,
00:10:19.31\00:10:20.72
you know what I'm saying,
00:10:20.75\00:10:22.08
and I'm struggling still having
00:10:22.12\00:10:23.45
to kind of ask my
parents, you know,
00:10:23.49\00:10:24.82
so all these things were
started to pileup, you know.
00:10:24.85\00:10:29.06
Then I reached a
certain point in my head
00:10:29.09\00:10:30.59
where I realize that I
would rather basically be dead
00:10:30.63\00:10:33.23
than be broke, you know,
00:10:33.26\00:10:34.60
'cause being broke is basically
being a paraplegic, you know,
00:10:34.63\00:10:37.03
where you are
paralyzed, you can't do nothing.
00:10:37.07\00:10:38.40
Yeah, okay.
00:10:38.43\00:10:39.77
Okay, you know,
that's interesting
00:10:39.80\00:10:41.40
because pretty much
the same thing for me.
00:10:41.44\00:10:43.94
I would, when
sports didn't work out
00:10:43.97\00:10:46.47
it was like, "Okay,
well, what else do I do?
00:10:46.51\00:10:48.71
Do I be a teacher, do I be
a firefighter, what do I do?"
00:10:48.74\00:10:52.05
And there was really no
passion for anything else
00:10:52.08\00:10:54.78
except for sports, no
backup plan, no plan B,
00:10:54.82\00:10:57.29
all my eggs in one
basket that didn't work out.
00:10:57.32\00:10:59.89
And I used to go to school
00:10:59.92\00:11:02.09
and I would see young
people 15-16 year olds
00:11:02.12\00:11:05.06
and they got gold
teeth in the mouth,
00:11:05.09\00:11:06.80
and tattoos all over their body,
00:11:06.83\00:11:08.63
and cars with rims on them,
and music, and it seemed like
00:11:08.66\00:11:13.10
all the females just loved them.
00:11:13.13\00:11:14.50
Right. And I was like, "Wow."
00:11:14.54\00:11:16.10
You know, and it's
like an attraction.
00:11:16.14\00:11:17.47
Didn't you turn on a music video
00:11:17.51\00:11:19.27
and you see money being...
00:11:19.31\00:11:21.14
Those things
perpetuated even more.
00:11:21.18\00:11:22.51
Definitely and it's like
it literally draws you in,
00:11:22.54\00:11:26.08
and it sucks you in,
and you know next thing
00:11:26.11\00:11:28.88
you know you're all
the way in that lifestyle.
00:11:28.92\00:11:30.69
Right.
00:11:30.72\00:11:32.05
So you got into that lifestyle,
00:11:32.09\00:11:33.42
and you
eventually got incarcerated,
00:11:33.46\00:11:35.02
talk about that experience?
00:11:35.06\00:11:36.79
Yeah, I was at home. Okay.
00:11:36.83\00:11:40.16
It was summer of 2009. Okay.
00:11:40.20\00:11:43.60
And I just came home for
basically just a few weeks
00:11:43.63\00:11:47.60
'cause I was doing summer school
00:11:47.64\00:11:49.77
in Alabama at the time.
00:11:49.80\00:11:51.14
Okay.
00:11:51.17\00:11:52.51
And when I came back
home for a few weeks,
00:11:52.54\00:11:55.71
cut a long story short,
00:11:55.74\00:11:57.08
I remember one
morning my mother,
00:11:57.11\00:11:59.08
I mean, sorry, I was
at my parent's house.
00:11:59.11\00:12:01.18
And I saw a black van
parked in the driveway
00:12:01.22\00:12:04.25
and it was
basically SWAT team, you know.
00:12:04.29\00:12:07.52
Yeah, wow.
00:12:07.56\00:12:08.89
And they raided the
house, or what have you,
00:12:08.92\00:12:10.63
they took me
and incarcerated me,
00:12:10.66\00:12:12.56
and I was locked
up for six weeks.
00:12:12.59\00:12:14.13
Okay.
00:12:14.16\00:12:15.50
And one of the hardest
things about being locked up
00:12:15.53\00:12:18.50
beyond just being locked up,
00:12:18.53\00:12:20.40
you know, is not knowing
when you're gonna come out...
00:12:20.44\00:12:23.91
Yeah, definitely. ..or
if you're gonna come out.
00:12:23.94\00:12:25.27
Because in my
county at the time,
00:12:25.31\00:12:27.48
they had me on
00:12:27.51\00:12:29.41
basically it was like
a federal weapons charge.
00:12:29.44\00:12:32.25
And my county, at the time,
00:12:32.28\00:12:34.75
they only have a special
bail hearing once a week, right?
00:12:34.78\00:12:38.82
And in my county, right,
00:12:38.85\00:12:40.89
you can imagine
like is backed up
00:12:40.92\00:12:42.79
for you to get a special hearing
00:12:42.82\00:12:44.43
which only occurs once a week,
00:12:44.46\00:12:46.06
like I basically
had to sit down there,
00:12:46.09\00:12:47.80
I mean, sit down
for about six weeks.
00:12:47.83\00:12:49.16
Yeah, wow.
00:12:49.20\00:12:50.53
You know, so again
the hardest part of it
00:12:50.57\00:12:51.90
was not knowing, you know.
00:12:51.93\00:12:53.67
And I'm telling you, like,
00:12:53.70\00:12:55.60
sometimes when
you turn on the TV,
00:12:55.64\00:12:56.97
and you see these prison movies
00:12:57.01\00:12:58.74
so where they'd like
to try glorify the prison
00:12:58.77\00:13:00.94
like it's fun and, you know,
00:13:00.98\00:13:02.94
there's always
something going on,
00:13:02.98\00:13:04.68
but primarily most of the
time you're just sitting down
00:13:04.71\00:13:07.68
doing a lot of nothing.
00:13:07.72\00:13:09.05
And to me, someone who's
always been very involved,
00:13:09.08\00:13:11.25
that was the
hardest part for me.
00:13:11.29\00:13:12.62
Sitting down and
doing nothing, you know.
00:13:12.65\00:13:14.36
And then being under
that amount of stress,
00:13:14.39\00:13:16.56
you can think
yourself crazy, you know,
00:13:16.59\00:13:18.29
like all I was like
I was literally reading
00:13:18.33\00:13:20.70
like at least four
or five novels a week.
00:13:20.73\00:13:22.26
Okay.
00:13:22.30\00:13:23.63
You know, in addition to I
was reading the Bible every day,
00:13:23.67\00:13:25.60
you know, and some of my
favorite Psalms and Proverbs,
00:13:25.63\00:13:28.00
you know.
00:13:28.04\00:13:29.37
And then, I
would stimulate my mind
00:13:29.40\00:13:32.64
and then I was
obviously workout a lot too,
00:13:32.67\00:13:34.28
you know, a lot of
pushups and chin-ups
00:13:34.31\00:13:35.64
or something of that sort.
00:13:35.68\00:13:37.01
So at the time, when I would
go to hit my pillow at night,
00:13:37.05\00:13:40.48
like I would just knock out,
00:13:40.52\00:13:41.85
you know, I would
just fall right asleep.
00:13:41.88\00:13:43.32
'Cause, yeah,
you can like I say,
00:13:43.35\00:13:45.22
you can think yourself crazy.
00:13:45.25\00:13:46.59
I remember, certain times,
looking through my window,
00:13:46.62\00:13:49.56
you know, outside and
looking at the groundhogs,
00:13:49.59\00:13:52.76
and the squirrels, and the birds
00:13:52.79\00:13:54.13
and just asking God like,
00:13:54.16\00:13:55.70
"I wish I could be a bird
or a groundhog right now."
00:13:55.73\00:13:59.13
Definitely. You
know what I'm saying?
00:13:59.17\00:14:00.50
I didn't even necessarily
just wishing I could be out like
00:14:00.54\00:14:02.27
you know, I envy the groundhogs
and the birds at the time,
00:14:02.30\00:14:04.84
you know, and imagine that God
00:14:04.87\00:14:06.41
I wish really gave us
dominion over them, you know.
00:14:06.44\00:14:09.21
Yeah, I was
definitely in complete envy,
00:14:09.24\00:14:11.98
and jealousy over
Mother Nature, you know,
00:14:12.01\00:14:14.65
with their freedom.
00:14:14.68\00:14:16.02
One thing that I've noticed
that you said a few times
00:14:16.05\00:14:18.65
is you turn on the TV,
00:14:18.69\00:14:20.79
and you would see you
know, things being shown
00:14:20.82\00:14:22.89
with the weapons,
with people carrying guns,
00:14:22.92\00:14:26.39
with drugs, with women,
00:14:26.43\00:14:27.96
with all these types
of things, with jail,
00:14:28.00\00:14:29.66
prison, you
know, being glorified.
00:14:29.70\00:14:31.83
How much of an impact
do you think that had?
00:14:31.87\00:14:35.00
Because a lot of
times young people will say,
00:14:35.04\00:14:36.74
well, a TV
doesn't do anything to me.
00:14:36.77\00:14:38.41
You know, it doesn't really
have an impact on me like that.
00:14:38.44\00:14:40.54
But how much of an impact,
00:14:40.58\00:14:41.91
because I've heard
you say TV several times,
00:14:41.94\00:14:43.98
so how much of an
impact do you think that had?
00:14:44.01\00:14:45.35
For those people who believe
that TV has no sort of impact,
00:14:45.38\00:14:49.12
let me just say this,
00:14:49.15\00:14:50.49
repetition is the
key to mind control.
00:14:50.52\00:14:52.55
So the more you see something,
00:14:52.59\00:14:54.69
the more you
see it all the time,
00:14:54.72\00:14:56.09
naturally the more
desensitized you become to it.
00:14:56.12\00:14:58.99
Yeah, definitely. You know.
00:14:59.03\00:15:00.36
And whether you admit it
or not, your subconscious,
00:15:00.40\00:15:05.20
you know, is
picking it up, you know.
00:15:05.23\00:15:08.50
So naturally these
things, to a certain extent,
00:15:08.54\00:15:11.91
start becoming more appealing,
00:15:11.94\00:15:14.34
you know, more
glorified, you know.
00:15:14.38\00:15:15.94
Yeah, definitely, definitely.
00:15:15.98\00:15:17.61
You know, I remember,
00:15:17.65\00:15:18.98
some years ago
I was researching,
00:15:19.01\00:15:20.52
you know, subliminal messages
and things like that and stuff
00:15:20.55\00:15:22.78
that you watch.
00:15:22.82\00:15:24.15
And it was interesting
how even certain cartoon,
00:15:24.19\00:15:26.72
certain cartoon movies
and all that, you know,
00:15:26.76\00:15:29.02
even I watched
as a kid growing up,
00:15:29.06\00:15:30.49
I look back at them,
00:15:30.53\00:15:31.86
and they had
subliminal messages in them.
00:15:31.89\00:15:34.53
And, you know, it
had certain scenes where,
00:15:34.56\00:15:36.67
and it's only your
mind, the back of your mind
00:15:36.70\00:15:38.63
like the recesses of
your mind that picks it up,
00:15:38.67\00:15:41.17
and then next thing you know
00:15:41.20\00:15:42.54
you're acting out certain things
00:15:42.57\00:15:43.91
and you have no
clue where in the world
00:15:43.94\00:15:45.27
did that even come from.
00:15:45.31\00:15:46.64
And a lot of it stems
from the things we watched,
00:15:46.68\00:15:48.54
the things we
listen to, you know,
00:15:48.58\00:15:50.61
so Philippians 4:8 is not a lie.
00:15:50.65\00:15:53.11
Where it talks about,
you know, whatsoever you do,
00:15:53.15\00:15:56.18
whatsoever you watch, you know,
do all to the glory of God.
00:15:56.22\00:15:58.95
Right.
00:15:58.99\00:16:00.32
And, you know, so what we watch,
00:16:00.36\00:16:02.79
what we do has an
impact upon our lives,
00:16:02.82\00:16:05.46
upon how we act,
and things like that.
00:16:05.49\00:16:08.66
Eyes are the window to the soul.
00:16:08.70\00:16:10.03
Oh, yeah, yeah,
definitely, definitely.
00:16:10.07\00:16:11.63
Looking back on your life,
00:16:11.67\00:16:13.44
what are some various
instances that you can look back
00:16:13.47\00:16:16.30
and know that you
saw the hand of God
00:16:16.34\00:16:18.04
moving in your life?
00:16:18.07\00:16:21.94
There's so many.
00:16:21.98\00:16:23.31
There's really too
many, as a matter of fact.
00:16:23.35\00:16:27.25
One in particular, I
can think of, though,
00:16:27.28\00:16:30.25
is basically how
my situation ended up.
00:16:30.29\00:16:33.19
Like I said, I was on
a federal weapons charge.
00:16:33.22\00:16:34.99
I was looking at a potential
00:16:35.02\00:16:37.26
three to four-year
minimum had I been convicted.
00:16:37.29\00:16:39.69
Okay.
00:16:39.73\00:16:41.06
August 8, 2011, two years after
I was basically incarcerated,
00:16:41.10\00:16:46.23
and charged, and all that...
00:16:46.27\00:16:47.60
Okay.
00:16:47.64\00:16:49.14
..we walked into the courthouse,
00:16:49.17\00:16:51.97
my mother, my
lawyer Donald McCloud,
00:16:52.01\00:16:54.54
he's actually now a judge now.
00:16:54.58\00:16:55.91
He's Seventh-day
Adventist as well.
00:16:55.94\00:16:57.45
Okay. Okay. Amen.
00:16:57.48\00:16:59.75
And we walked into court
anticipating a week long fight,
00:16:59.78\00:17:03.12
you know, week's long trial,
00:17:03.15\00:17:04.62
and within the
first five minutes
00:17:04.65\00:17:06.19
they threw all the charges out
00:17:06.22\00:17:08.06
and just
completely dismissed it.
00:17:08.09\00:17:09.42
Wow.
00:17:09.46\00:17:10.79
You know, and I mean
like if that wasn't God
00:17:10.83\00:17:12.39
then I just don't know
what else is, you know.
00:17:12.43\00:17:14.30
And it was at that moment
00:17:14.33\00:17:16.67
where I was
like, "You know what?
00:17:16.70\00:17:18.03
Let me try to
get out of the city,
00:17:18.07\00:17:20.10
get back to Huntsville,
00:17:20.14\00:17:21.70
or head back to Oakwood rather
and try finish up my schooling,
00:17:21.74\00:17:24.67
and move ahead with my life.
00:17:24.71\00:17:26.98
Okay, so looking
back on your life as well,
00:17:27.01\00:17:29.48
and you've seen the
hand of God, you know,
00:17:29.51\00:17:31.95
moving in certain situations.
00:17:31.98\00:17:34.78
You got involved
with drinking, drugs,
00:17:34.82\00:17:37.25
different things like that.
00:17:37.29\00:17:39.05
What do you think was
the motivating factor that,
00:17:39.09\00:17:42.92
where you trying
to cover up something?
00:17:42.96\00:17:45.33
What do you think
was the motivating factor
00:17:45.36\00:17:46.86
for starting to use drugs,
00:17:46.90\00:17:48.40
and what age
where you at that point?
00:17:48.43\00:17:51.13
I'd say roughly
around like 17, 18
00:17:51.17\00:17:55.47
is when I kind of
experimented a couple of times,
00:17:55.50\00:17:58.04
but when I started more
so doing it was more so,
00:17:58.07\00:18:00.61
I guess around the time
00:18:00.64\00:18:01.98
when I was like
maybe like 19, 20.
00:18:02.01\00:18:04.15
Okay. You know.
00:18:04.18\00:18:05.55
And...
00:18:05.58\00:18:06.92
Was it more just
experimental or just social?
00:18:06.95\00:18:09.35
Well, for the drinking
that was somewhat experimental
00:18:09.38\00:18:12.35
as well as social.
00:18:12.39\00:18:13.72
Okay. You know.
00:18:13.76\00:18:15.09
And it seemed like,
once you started drinking,
00:18:15.12\00:18:18.16
the social gatherings...
00:18:18.19\00:18:20.40
Everything got
better. Yeah. Yeah, right?
00:18:20.43\00:18:22.53
And then as for the
drugs whatever, I mean,
00:18:22.56\00:18:28.24
I won't say that I necessarily
00:18:28.27\00:18:29.90
dabbled into a
lot of hard drugs,
00:18:29.94\00:18:31.97
but I definitely did used to do,
00:18:32.01\00:18:33.48
or consume a fair
amount of marijuana.
00:18:33.51\00:18:35.68
Okay. Okay.
00:18:35.71\00:18:37.45
When I had, one thing I can
say with that is for me, again,
00:18:37.48\00:18:43.18
I guess it was just
kind of like an outlet,
00:18:43.22\00:18:45.05
you know, seeking
some sort of outlet to deal
00:18:45.09\00:18:47.69
with some frustrations
at some of the curveballs
00:18:47.72\00:18:50.23
that life was
throwing me, you know.
00:18:50.26\00:18:51.59
Did you realize,
00:18:51.63\00:18:52.96
and that's what a lot of
us tend to say, you know,
00:18:52.99\00:18:55.83
dealing with the
frustrations of our life,
00:18:55.86\00:18:58.17
different things like that,
00:18:58.20\00:18:59.53
we use the
narcotics, the alcohol,
00:18:59.57\00:19:01.20
the marijuana, you
know, whatever the drug is,
00:19:01.24\00:19:03.97
and to cover up.
00:19:04.01\00:19:06.47
But at the end of the day
the problem is still there.
00:19:06.51\00:19:08.94
Did you find for yourself that
it was pretty much the same end
00:19:08.98\00:19:11.71
'cause you come off
that high and, you know,
00:19:11.75\00:19:13.65
still issue is
same, it's still there?
00:19:13.68\00:19:15.62
Yeah, yeah, you're right.
00:19:15.65\00:19:16.99
I mean, no matter how
much I can smoke or drink,
00:19:17.02\00:19:19.29
like my brothers are still sick.
00:19:19.32\00:19:20.82
Yeah. You know what I'm saying?
00:19:20.86\00:19:22.19
Like, I still have
bills to pay, like, you know,
00:19:22.22\00:19:23.79
the situation
doesn't ever really change.
00:19:23.83\00:19:25.49
And it comes a point in time
00:19:25.53\00:19:26.96
where you realize
that the only person
00:19:27.00\00:19:28.53
who can really help you is God.
00:19:28.56\00:19:29.90
Yeah.
00:19:29.93\00:19:31.27
And through my whole situation
one thing that really taught me
00:19:31.30\00:19:34.74
was besides God, the
only other two people
00:19:34.77\00:19:37.41
who really fight
for me, and scratch
00:19:37.44\00:19:39.07
and claw for me all
the time are my parents,
00:19:39.11\00:19:40.44
you know.
00:19:40.48\00:19:41.81
They're always in my
corner no matter what.
00:19:41.84\00:19:43.18
Yeah. You know.
00:19:43.21\00:19:44.55
And, yeah, they would
definitely go around the world
00:19:44.58\00:19:45.98
than back from me.
00:19:46.01\00:19:47.35
Amen. Amen.
00:19:47.38\00:19:48.72
And I can't
even, yeah, it doesn't,
00:19:48.75\00:19:50.19
doesn't like to say about that.
00:19:50.22\00:19:51.55
No one else is
fighting for me the way they do.
00:19:51.59\00:19:52.92
Yeah, yeah,
you're never finding.
00:19:52.95\00:19:54.29
I didn't realize
that till later on in life
00:19:54.32\00:19:56.02
because I
gravitated so much to friends.
00:19:56.06\00:19:57.93
Right exactly.
00:19:57.96\00:19:59.29
And once you get locked,
00:19:59.33\00:20:00.66
especially if you get locked up,
00:20:00.70\00:20:02.03
then you realize that
00:20:02.06\00:20:03.40
you have to make
all these collect calls.
00:20:03.43\00:20:04.77
Yeah.
00:20:04.80\00:20:06.13
Like, not too
many of your friends
00:20:06.17\00:20:07.50
are gonna pay for
those collect calls.
00:20:07.54\00:20:08.87
Yeah, they're not
gonna answer the phone calls.
00:20:08.90\00:20:10.24
Yeah, they are
not gonna answer them.
00:20:10.27\00:20:11.61
Your parents will
answer every single time.
00:20:11.64\00:20:12.97
Yeah, definitely.
00:20:13.01\00:20:14.34
I feel sorry for the bill
that my parents probably had
00:20:14.38\00:20:15.71
during that time, you know.
00:20:15.74\00:20:17.08
Oh, yeah.
00:20:17.11\00:20:18.45
And it's funny
because when I first
00:20:18.48\00:20:19.81
got into my problem,
00:20:19.85\00:20:21.18
I didn't even wanna call
them or nothing for a few days,
00:20:21.22\00:20:22.55
you know what I'm saying,
in the times when they would...
00:20:22.58\00:20:24.52
And then finally
when I did call them,
00:20:24.55\00:20:26.76
they're like, "Why
didn't you call sooner?"
00:20:26.79\00:20:28.32
You know, like they're not
even upset about the situation.
00:20:28.36\00:20:31.23
They're just so
concerned about me, you know.
00:20:31.26\00:20:33.53
Yeah, definitely.
00:20:33.56\00:20:35.13
And, you know, that
is interesting, you know,
00:20:35.16\00:20:37.03
I've been in the same situation.
00:20:37.07\00:20:39.13
Get incarcerated, I
don't call my friends
00:20:39.17\00:20:41.30
'cause I know they not
gonna try to bond me out,
00:20:41.34\00:20:43.10
they are not gonna
answer the collect call.
00:20:43.14\00:20:44.67
But I will call my parents.
00:20:44.71\00:20:46.04
Now, my parents
didn't bond me out either.
00:20:46.07\00:20:47.41
That's one thing that, you know,
00:20:47.44\00:20:48.81
my parents always
try to, they love me,
00:20:48.84\00:20:52.91
but at the same
time if I did the crime,
00:20:52.95\00:20:54.75
basically you're
gonna do the time.
00:20:54.78\00:20:56.12
I hear you. You
know what I'm saying?
00:20:56.15\00:20:57.49
They will come visit me,
00:20:57.52\00:20:58.85
they will put money on my books,
00:20:58.89\00:21:00.22
you know, so I could
buy a little Ramen noodles
00:21:00.26\00:21:01.59
while I was incarcerated,
different things like that.
00:21:01.62\00:21:03.22
But in terms of bonding me
out, "Nah, you pretty much..."
00:21:03.26\00:21:05.36
I still miss though.
00:21:05.39\00:21:06.73
My parents coming to
visit me were actually,
00:21:06.76\00:21:09.13
I actually preferred
that they didn't visit me
00:21:09.16\00:21:11.03
when I was in there.
00:21:11.07\00:21:12.40
Because the days
when they would come
00:21:12.43\00:21:13.77
and visit me and
I'm talking to them
00:21:13.80\00:21:15.14
through this glass, you know...
00:21:15.17\00:21:16.50
Yeah, that's hard.
00:21:16.54\00:21:17.87
Yeah, they're
basically tearing up
00:21:17.91\00:21:19.24
and crying and stuff, you know.
00:21:19.27\00:21:20.61
And, yeah, those would
be the roughest days for me.
00:21:20.64\00:21:22.64
Yeah, that's a very
hard experience where...
00:21:22.68\00:21:25.81
'Cause you realize once
you, that it's not only you,
00:21:25.85\00:21:28.35
you realize how much
00:21:28.38\00:21:30.39
what takes place with you
or your actions impact others.
00:21:30.42\00:21:32.69
Impacts others around. You know.
00:21:32.72\00:21:34.06
And it makes you
feel its bitterness.
00:21:34.09\00:21:36.06
It's a hard pill to swallow.
00:21:36.09\00:21:37.43
Definitely, and I
used to wonder how do,
00:21:37.46\00:21:39.59
why would people tell
me, especially family,
00:21:39.63\00:21:41.53
that I'm being selfish.
00:21:41.56\00:21:42.90
Right. How am I being selfish?
00:21:42.93\00:21:44.27
It's just me locked up. Right.
00:21:44.30\00:21:45.63
Not realizing that
when I get locked up
00:21:45.67\00:21:47.00
everybody gets locked up.
00:21:47.04\00:21:48.37
Right, exactly.
00:21:48.40\00:21:49.74
You know, and, man,
it's a trying situation.
00:21:49.77\00:21:51.27
And just the thing
that makes me so upset
00:21:51.31\00:21:55.04
is that is so glorified
that, you know, people want it,
00:21:55.08\00:21:59.08
and then when you
get in that situation
00:21:59.11\00:22:00.85
and you see reality
where that glass is there,
00:22:00.88\00:22:03.49
you can't touch
your family members,
00:22:03.52\00:22:05.55
you put your hand
on there on the glass,
00:22:05.59\00:22:07.19
they can put their hand
back but you can't touch them
00:22:07.22\00:22:08.86
'cause they're
separate by thick glass,
00:22:08.89\00:22:10.43
talk to them over the phone.
00:22:10.46\00:22:13.03
And it's just is a sad situation
00:22:13.06\00:22:14.70
and then when the
visit is close to over.
00:22:14.73\00:22:16.46
Oh, yeah.
00:22:16.50\00:22:17.83
And when your mother,
your father leave, man,
00:22:17.87\00:22:20.14
you just see the
tears in their eyes, man,
00:22:20.17\00:22:21.90
it's heartbreaking,
it's overwhelming.
00:22:21.94\00:22:23.61
Yeah, it is. It definitely.
00:22:23.64\00:22:25.21
What was the point in
your life when you realized
00:22:25.24\00:22:27.48
that you needed
to make a change?
00:22:27.51\00:22:31.01
Around the time I got locked up.
00:22:31.05\00:22:32.38
Okay. Okay.
00:22:32.41\00:22:33.75
During that point in
time is when I realized
00:22:33.78\00:22:35.12
that I really
needed to start changing,
00:22:35.15\00:22:36.69
you know, and digging deep.
00:22:36.72\00:22:38.05
And through that
whole experience,
00:22:38.09\00:22:40.42
I mean, it allowed me to realize
00:22:40.46\00:22:42.02
that God really
carried me, you know.
00:22:42.06\00:22:43.43
And even from the first moment
I got to jail or whatever like,
00:22:43.46\00:22:47.00
I was never ever
concerned about my safety
00:22:47.03\00:22:49.20
or anything like that.
00:22:49.23\00:22:50.57
You know what I'm saying?
00:22:50.60\00:22:51.93
Like from the
moment I was there,
00:22:51.97\00:22:53.30
people just somehow
just found favor with me.
00:22:53.34\00:22:55.54
You know, like
some of the older guys
00:22:55.57\00:22:57.31
they were like,
"Oh, we could tell that
00:22:57.34\00:22:58.67
this is your
first time in here."
00:22:58.71\00:23:00.04
You know, but they
are like, they are like,
00:23:00.08\00:23:01.41
"Oh, don't worry,
as long as we here,
00:23:01.44\00:23:02.78
nobody's not gonna bother you."
00:23:02.81\00:23:04.15
You know.
00:23:04.18\00:23:05.51
And because they knew
00:23:05.55\00:23:06.88
that I actually had been in
university or whatever like,
00:23:06.92\00:23:09.38
whenever they were
writing letters and stuff,
00:23:09.42\00:23:10.89
they'd always get me
to proofread their letters
00:23:10.92\00:23:12.52
and stuff like
that, yeah, you know.
00:23:12.55\00:23:14.59
So, yeah, yeah I
definitely saw the hand of God
00:23:14.62\00:23:17.93
moving from even when
I was in there, you know.
00:23:17.96\00:23:19.79
Okay. Amen.
00:23:19.83\00:23:21.46
Now you currently a
student at Oakwood University,
00:23:21.50\00:23:25.03
talk about your major,
00:23:25.07\00:23:26.50
and how your major can
impact the world for Jesus?
00:23:26.53\00:23:30.91
I, well, my major is,
00:23:30.94\00:23:33.24
I'm a communications
major with concentration in PR
00:23:33.27\00:23:36.75
and a minor in
political science.
00:23:36.78\00:23:38.11
Okay.
00:23:38.15\00:23:39.48
So pretty much what I want to do
00:23:39.51\00:23:41.18
is I wanna use my PR
background to build a rapport
00:23:41.22\00:23:47.56
within the community, you know.
00:23:47.59\00:23:50.73
Try to do as much as I possibly
can get involved, you know.
00:23:50.76\00:23:54.13
And through using the
PR to build my rapport
00:23:54.16\00:23:57.63
amongst the
community, then I wanna,
00:23:57.67\00:23:59.30
when I get some
gray hairs on my head,
00:23:59.33\00:24:00.80
you know, perhaps try to
run for public office, you know.
00:24:00.84\00:24:03.30
Okay, okay.
00:24:03.34\00:24:05.14
But running for
public office, to me,
00:24:05.17\00:24:07.34
is more so still way a means
00:24:07.38\00:24:10.21
of still
accomplishing my endgame goal
00:24:10.25\00:24:11.95
'cause my end term
goal is to be a lobbyist.
00:24:11.98\00:24:14.48
Amen. You know?
00:24:14.52\00:24:15.85
And the reason why I want to,
00:24:15.88\00:24:17.22
and a lot of
people look at lobbyists
00:24:17.25\00:24:19.15
as being
negative or what have you,
00:24:19.19\00:24:20.96
but it really
comes down to the cause
00:24:20.99\00:24:23.39
that you're lobbying for.
00:24:23.43\00:24:24.79
Okay. You know?
00:24:24.83\00:24:26.26
And I find that
being a lobbyist,
00:24:26.29\00:24:28.53
I would have,
I'll be in a position
00:24:28.56\00:24:30.13
to greater effect change
than even that of a politician.
00:24:30.17\00:24:33.50
Okay. You know?
00:24:33.54\00:24:34.87
'Cause ex-politicians
make the greatest lobbyist
00:24:34.90\00:24:36.74
because obviously
special interest groups
00:24:36.77\00:24:39.01
and politicians, you know,
00:24:39.04\00:24:41.28
they obviously wanna
have the ear of people
00:24:41.31\00:24:44.68
who can make things happen.
00:24:44.71\00:24:46.05
Okay, okay. You know?
00:24:46.08\00:24:47.42
But being a politician,
00:24:47.45\00:24:50.09
if you don't really
have a special interest group
00:24:50.12\00:24:52.05
and lobbyist behind you,
00:24:52.09\00:24:53.52
you will pass
little to no legislation.
00:24:53.56\00:24:55.99
It is really the special
interest groups and lobbyists
00:24:56.02\00:24:57.99
who have the power to
do most things, you know.
00:24:58.03\00:25:01.50
And that's why I
really wanna be a lobbyist
00:25:01.53\00:25:04.47
because I feel that I
would be in a greater position
00:25:04.50\00:25:06.87
to effect change.
00:25:06.90\00:25:08.24
To effect change, yeah, okay.
00:25:08.27\00:25:09.60
Looking back on your life,
00:25:09.64\00:25:11.07
what are some of the
things that you would change
00:25:11.11\00:25:13.81
versus some of the
things that you wouldn't change
00:25:13.84\00:25:15.64
in your path that you
have grown and learned from?
00:25:15.68\00:25:18.51
If some of the things
that I would change would be,
00:25:18.55\00:25:21.32
I guess some of the
things that I did growing up
00:25:21.35\00:25:22.92
because I realize
now as I get older,
00:25:22.95\00:25:25.42
you know how selfish
some of those things were,
00:25:25.45\00:25:27.29
as we were saying.
00:25:27.32\00:25:28.66
But aside from that,
00:25:28.69\00:25:31.09
there's not really
much I would change
00:25:31.13\00:25:32.63
because I feel
that a lot of the things
00:25:32.66\00:25:34.40
that I've
undergone or experienced
00:25:34.43\00:25:36.43
have helped me to
mature as a person,
00:25:36.46\00:25:38.63
and build a lot of
character, you know.
00:25:38.67\00:25:40.64
And I also feel that it makes me
00:25:40.67\00:25:42.00
a bit more relatable, you know.
00:25:42.04\00:25:43.61
And when I do
eventually, you know,
00:25:43.64\00:25:47.28
wanna write my book
00:25:47.31\00:25:48.64
and get ready to
run for public office,
00:25:48.68\00:25:50.31
you know, these are,
my past is not anything
00:25:50.35\00:25:52.31
that I wanna hide, you know.
00:25:52.35\00:25:53.68
It's definitely
something I wanna put out there
00:25:53.72\00:25:55.32
for the world to know, you know.
00:25:55.35\00:25:56.69
Because too oftentimes you find
00:25:56.72\00:26:00.92
that a lot of politicians
try to run like they're,
00:26:00.96\00:26:03.12
you know, like they have
this white head on their head.
00:26:03.16\00:26:05.36
Yeah, like never
did anything, yeah.
00:26:05.39\00:26:06.76
Yeah, exactly. Okay.
00:26:06.80\00:26:08.13
And then it comes
back to bite you, you know.
00:26:08.16\00:26:10.37
And then, that's just
not realistic, you know,
00:26:10.40\00:26:13.27
like, I mean, everybody has
some sort of past, you know.
00:26:13.30\00:26:15.70
Obama has admitted to
smoking weed, you know.
00:26:15.74\00:26:19.54
President Bush, I
mean, ex-President Bush
00:26:19.57\00:26:21.64
he used to be a
cokehead/drunkard, you know.
00:26:21.68\00:26:25.05
So I mean like no
one is a saint and just,
00:26:25.08\00:26:27.55
and your past
does not mean that,
00:26:27.58\00:26:30.25
I mean does not
negatively impact
00:26:30.29\00:26:31.65
your future all of the time.
00:26:31.69\00:26:33.09
Definitely. You
know what I'm saying?
00:26:33.12\00:26:34.46
What I want you to do right now
00:26:34.49\00:26:35.82
is I want you to
look into the camera,
00:26:35.86\00:26:37.56
and I want you to
talk to that young man
00:26:37.59\00:26:40.33
that is going through
some of the same things
00:26:40.36\00:26:42.63
that you went through,
00:26:42.66\00:26:44.00
that has the pressure on
them, that wants to play sports
00:26:44.03\00:26:46.60
but is dealing with the Sabbath,
00:26:46.63\00:26:49.20
you know, what they should do,
00:26:49.24\00:26:50.64
and even the joy
that they can find
00:26:50.67\00:26:52.34
from serving God.
00:26:52.37\00:26:53.71
I want you to talk to
that young person right now.
00:26:53.74\00:26:57.91
Dear, young men and
young women out there.
00:26:57.95\00:27:01.08
The fast money goes
just as fast as it comes.
00:27:01.12\00:27:06.72
It's a priceless feeling
00:27:06.76\00:27:08.09
when you earn
something out there
00:27:08.12\00:27:10.13
and no one can take it from you,
00:27:10.16\00:27:12.19
and you don't have to be
00:27:12.23\00:27:13.56
looking over your
shoulder at all times,
00:27:13.60\00:27:15.23
worrying about the police
or somebody coming to rob you.
00:27:15.26\00:27:19.30
This is not a nice
reality whatsoever.
00:27:19.33\00:27:23.51
So my only advice is
that whatever you do,
00:27:23.54\00:27:27.68
definitely try to do it
00:27:27.71\00:27:29.04
to the honor in
complete glory of God
00:27:29.08\00:27:31.01
and just never be
inconsiderate to think
00:27:31.05\00:27:34.38
that what you do only
impacts you and you alone,
00:27:34.42\00:27:39.05
because there's a
lot of people around you
00:27:39.09\00:27:41.39
who love you more
than you can even imagine.
00:27:41.42\00:27:45.09
Well said, well said.
00:27:45.13\00:27:46.46
Dwight, I just wanna thank
you for being on the program,
00:27:46.49\00:27:49.00
and it's very much a blessing.
00:27:49.03\00:27:51.13
We'd like to thank you
all for tuning in once again
00:27:51.17\00:27:53.34
for The New Journey.
00:27:53.37\00:27:54.70
Be sure to tune in next
time for an exciting episode
00:27:54.74\00:27:57.51
of The New Journey.
00:27:57.54\00:27:58.87
Be blessed.
00:27:58.91\00:28:00.24