A CALL TO THE VILLAGE- Be That Bridge © 2012

By Wayne D. Lewis, Sr.

There is absolutely no reason why our children can’t be successful, if we want them to be.  There is absolutely no reason why our children can’t achieve their dreams, if we want them to do so.  True, our children are denied, deprived and treated differently because they are Black and Beautiful, but that is no reason to allow them to have a self-defeating, self-destructive, or a self-hating attitude about themselves. 

As a Village, we must be ever-mindful of our obligation to instill in our children that they are no less gifted, no less special, no less capable of achieving their dreams than anyone else, just because of the obstacles that are placed in front of them, if for no other reason, because of the color of their skin.

As a Village, we must be ever-proactive in reminding our children that they deserve the very best that life has to offer, and that despite whether or not schools are closed in their communities, or operate on a different set of rules, or despite injustices that seem to be an integral part of what life presents to them, that our children will have to go an extra mile, to get an education that they not only deserve, but are very well capable of achieving.

For our children, it is the emphasis of the ABC’s of success.  Which paradoxically is: Conceive it; Believe it and Achieve it, as I first learned from Napoleon Hill, author of Think and Grow Rich (http://youtu.be/2hA-7aq6OXI).   What he shared with us, was that what the mind can conceive, we are able to believe, and ultimately, we must willing to work to achieve that which the mind conceives.  This simple formula, whether acknowledged, taught, or is incidental to success, is unquestionable, unambiguous, and without fail. 

Unless. Truly unless, our children are instilled with a positive attitude, and are encouraged to pursue their dreams, they will merely be robots, carrying out others’ dreams, while their own dreams are totally disregarded, or never pursued by them.  The evidence of the success of this formula is all around us.  And so is the evidence of a failure to follow this formula. 

For our children, many of whom are gifted, talented, and inspirational in their own right, we can’t afford to take for granted, or assume that the world will throw out her welcome mat, open her doors, or open her arms if our children aren’t ready to assume their rightful place on the world stage.  To make such an assumption would be counter-productive to the principles of success.  Success is about a will, a will to dream, a will to believe, a will to learn, and a will to achieve.  Success, as we must teach our children, is about action, not inaction. 

The ability to achieve already exists in our children.  But we as a village must be that bridge that helps our children cross over.  As a village, we can no longer be the bridge that is out of service, dismantled, destroyed, under construction, or always in an up position that allows others to pass through, while our children wait on the banks of anticipation; on the banks of self-hatred, or on the banks of self-defeatism. 

As a village, our bridge must be a full service bridge when it comes to helping our children achieve their level best.  As a village, as that bridge for our children, we must be in service at all times where our children are able to pass freely, back and forth, without obstruction, without fear, and without fail, ready to help our children cross over from their dreams to their greatest achievements. We must be that bridge in our children’s lives. We must hold strong.

We must hold strong, while our children carry their dreams across our bridge to and from the village.  We must hold strong while our children carry their dreams, which are often bigger than them, heavier than they are, but are never to much for them to achieve.  We must hold strong, as a village, as a bridge, with no maximum weight capacity for our children’s dreams, so that they never have to worry about dreaming too big, too far, or too wide.  We must hold strong, sway though we may like the Golden Gate Bridge, the Brooklyn Bridge, but we must hold strong.

We must hold strong, as a village, as that bridge, where every exit is the right exit, where every span is high enough to carry our children over any obstacle; and where every span is long enough for them to reach their destination, and every trip is a good one to achieving their goals. 

As a village, we must be that bridge. It is as easy for us to do as giving a big hug and saying, “I love you.”  We must be the ultimate bridge that helps our children to achieve their dreams.  Knowing that they are loved, and knowing that no matter what our children face in the world ahead, that our love will bring them to their crowning achievement.  As a village, we must be that bridge.  We must HOLD STRONG, until EVERY LAST ONE of our children achieves their dreams.  Hold strong and be that bridge.

To the Village, I say:  It’s our tine.  It’s our call.  It’s our move.