What's on my mind?

What's up, guys? So what's on my mind today? Sometimes they say the quiet part out loud. But were listening? Okay, guys, let's get into this.  A massive voting block could be created if middle-class and poor white people joined forces with the middle-class and poor Black people and people of color, swinging power to the majority of the people in the country.

Then why has it hasn't happened? The economic power of such a voting block would prove itself formidable. Could there be a simple answer as to why this hasn't happened? I think yes. Remember the K.I.S.S. theory. K.I.S.S. is an acronym that stands for "keep it simple stupid." And why many things may need a long explanation to get to the true heart of why something is happening. 

The reason why these people haven't joined forces isn't one of them.
Occam's razor, another theory, applies here also. In layman's terms, it's a theory that says that the simplest explanation is usually the best one.

The 36 President, Lyndon B. Johnson, said the quiet part out loud. L.B.J., a savvy white political force raised in the south. Understood that he had his fingers on the pulse of white people. He acknowledged that the way to move impoverished and middle-class white people against the things that would benefit them was to convince them that they were better than blacks. L.B.J. once said, "If you can convince the lowest white man he's better than the best-colored man, he won't notice you're picking his pocket. Hell, give him somebody to look down on, and he'll empty his pockets for you."

Now no one likes to feel tricked. And believe it or not, that's the rub.  So trying to engage these people and show them that they are voting against their interest often pushes them further into the rabbit hole.

That's the whole ball game: divide and conquer. It's always been the game. The middle class and poor white people that often vote against their economic interests find themselves hoodwinked by a part of the country that will cut them off as quickly as they no longer need them.

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What's up, guys? So what's on my mind today, music. There are very few people in this world that can match my love for music. The complexity of the sounds and the ability of the artist to tell a familiar story is what traps me. I grew up with people that shared my love for music, and they have exceptional talents. I would beg them to teach something. One of my friends showed me how to play the eight notes of the bass line to "Billie Jean." Yes, I was jealous. I was always jealous that I did have any formal training on the piano. Nowadays, I hear about these kids making money by creating beats to sell to artists.  I think, "Man, I know a guy that would have been great at creating beats." One day while in a restaurant, I saw a guy playing a Cajon. I said to myself, I know I have noticed that instrument before, kind of. So this is a story about that discovery. As you guys have probably already figured out, I tried to learn and soak in as much of the tremendous amount of talent that was around as I could. Okay, guys, let's get into this!

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What's up, guys? So, what's on my mind today? It's all about the women, Black women. Black women are the backbone of Black culture.  Until we decide to lift all Black women as a Black community, we will continue to run in place. Okay, guys, let's get into this.

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What's up, guys? So what's on my mind today, "Too Late." The best teachers can plant a seed that will bear many fruits well into the future. They slip those nuggets of information to you repeatedly, without you becoming aware that you are getting a life lesson. My most formidable teacher was very much like Mr. Miyagi, my dad. Simple tasks that seemed meaningless to me or I saw as a way to extract "free labor" often planted those fruitful trees that I still pick from today.  Today's poem is number six from my 2013 project 365. Now, it's simple. But one of my favorite quotes is about simplicity. It states,  "Within simplicity lies the sublime."-Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. It means that there is a grandeur found in intelligibility. I know, Germans, you have to be careful quoting them. But I found this quote in a book titled "All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten by Robert Fulghum. Which is confirmed, by the way, now fight me. But if someone would ask me to explain that quote to them now, I would say K.I.S.S. or keep it simple stupid. I know that's kind of harsh, but it's to the point. So this poem plays on the lesson my dad taught me in three acts, 1. Action, do something. 2. Don't be afraid to fail, but if you do fail, then do it quickly. 3. Don't dwell on your failures. These are valuable lessons from which to learn. Please make a new plan and try it out. Okay, guys, let's get into this.

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What's up, guys? So what's on my mind today, The Big Day. I wonder if you guys caught that I said, The Big Day and not MY Big Day. I would eventually have a "Big Day," but this poem is not about that at all. No, this is a poem about a person (me) that knew his time had run out. There would be no hero moment here. No dramatic moment of me rushing in and shouting, "this wedding should not proceed." Nope. According to the Gambler's rules, I should walk away, and that's what I did.  Okay, guys, Let's get into this.

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Day five of my 2013 Project 365. I love this poem for so many reasons. It's simple. It's meaningful. It's impactful. 9/11.

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What's up, guys? So, what's on my mind today? All relationships must end. This poem is for the ones that don't end so well. This is the fourth poem of my 2013 Project 365.

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What's up, guys? So, what's on my mind today, A Blew Duet. This is the third poem of my 2013 Project 365. I originally wrote this poem in 1998. I was working as an ICU nurse in my hometown of Indianola, MS, and while watching this older man that I had known all my life say goodbye to his wife, I picked up my pen and started writing. 

We were going to turn off the ventilator and extubate her whenever he was ready. I turned off most of the alarms to give him as much peace as possible. I then watched him from the desk to signal me when he was ready.  

He told his children to wait outside as he sat there with her. He held her in silence mostly. But he did talk to her, and he cried. I brought him tissues, but men of that era always had a handkerchief with them. No amount of time would be enough for him, and if he wanted to take my whole shift to say goodbye, then so be it. Selfishly I wished he would have. 

In a bigger facility, I would have called respiratory to come and extubate the pt and turn off the vent. During the night shift in a small facility in Indianola, the ICU nurse wears many different hats, and the responsibility would fall to me. I love my job as a nurse, except for this part of the job.

After some time, he signaled to me he was ready. He shook my hand and thanked me. His sons and daughters came into the room. I called the ER doctor over, we disconnected the ventilator from the ET tube and turned it off. Deflated the endotracheal tube balloon, removed the tape, and pulled the tube. The pt was not breathing, but there was a rhythm on the monitor and a feeble pulse. Her pulse was gone after 3 mins marking the end of her life, death.

I tried to leave the room, but the family wanted me to stay.  I stayed for a few more minutes, but then I gave all the time they needed to say goodbye.

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What's up, guys? What's on my mind today? Well, on day two of my 2013 Project 365, I wrote this poem that I titled Nothing. I hope you guys enjoy it.

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In 2013, I decided that I was going to write a poem every day. The poem I am sharing does borrow familiar words from the greatest, Maya Angelou. Maya Angelou's poem Still I Rise hits themes about the struggle and difficulties of a black woman, and in the end, rising above it all with her focus determination. I come from a solid matriarchal social influence. They called my barely 5 feet tall, maybe a 120 lb great-grandmother "Big Mama" for a reason, and size wasn't it. This message is my message to the black women, those that have come before, and to the ones coming after me.

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