The Definition of Love

"The hardest thing in life, the hardest thing to do, is to love so hard that you'll love without a selfish heart. The test of one's true passion for another will visit on many occassions over the span of a lifetime. The definition is to love someone so intensely that you will allow your light to fade if it means their's will burn for a lifetime. The true test--if it is required--is to allow one to have a chance at a beginning, even if it means your end. That's true love. That's the hardest thing to do. We worry about what is best for us when what is best for them is the only thing which should matter. We should love that hard. Our love should be that deep. Love is all that matters." ---Me


How deep is your love?


Love hard. Love unselfishly. Be free.

---EOB

A Moment To Reflect.....

...On the one's you're missing right now.

---EOB

So What I Wanted To Tell You Was...

I've really been feeling this song lately. I mean it moves me in a flying-down-the-street-with-the-system-all-the-way-up-while-singing-it-at-the-top-of-your-lungs-until-you're-hoarse-and-not-caring-who-sees-you-type of way. I'm searching for the right thing to say, the right way to explain. But it's impossible. This is a language that is difficult to translate. So for now I'll just tell you I'm feeling it.

And here's the thing: I don't know why.


---EOB

Words Frozen In Time

"The hottest places in hell are reserved for those who, in a period of moral crisis, maintain their neutrality. There comes a time when silence is betrayal. Proof of these words is beyond doubt."--Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

And then he was murdered, one year after his April, 4, 1967 delivery of the speech "A Time To Break Silence: Declaration of Independence from the Vietnam War." It's not easy to stand alone. Everything about yourself is magnified. And to the untrained eye, something just isn't right. It's a lonely place. This is a more difficult road to travel--one many are afraid to walk. And can you blame them? It's easier to be comfortable. And disappearing into the crowd becomes a way out. With comfort lies complacency.

Complacency is the mortal enemy of all that is progressive.

King was far from comfortable. He was a tortured soul. He was restless. He was an observer, forced to see the deficiencies of the world, and himself. Rocks were being overturned. Eyes were being opened. Voices were heard. And for this, King became Public Enemy No.1. He was called names. Communist. Plots were constructed. William C. Sullivan, Head of U.S. Intelligence, believed he posed a threat to the country. In a memo to Federal Bureau of Investigation Director J. Edgar Hoover, he wrote: "When the true facts concerning (King's) activities are presented, such should be enough...the Negroes will be left without a national leader of sufficiently compelling personality to steer them in the proper direction."

And all this for deciding to stand firmly alone. Could you stand alone? What scares you most? Darkness or light? Your answer tells you exactly what you would have done in King's position.

His words relate to yesterday. However, they are no stranger to today and tomorrow. His words are timeless. But don't take my word for it. Listen for yourself---and do.

---EOB

Don't Let It Die

A young Shawn Carter. A man with nothing but a dream and a little talent to lead the way. A perfect example. Put talent together with immense, inexplicable hunger and what you get is perfection. Remember when you first started? You were fighting for your position in the world. Have you ever been so passionate about something that you're determined to achieve it? You're surrounded by so many things that can mislead you, discourage you and force you to follow the pack of mediocrity. But something holds you back. Something keeps you from falling off the cliff. It's that hunger. It's the dream that one day tomorrow will be better than the day before. It fuels you. You have to make it. You have to succeed. Failure is your enemy. There is no other choice. You feel it in your bones. That hunger. It pumps through your veins, inhabits your mind and lives in your heart. It's in your walk, your talk and the way you see the world. You're at your best. You're peforming at such a high level. You're doing things you didn't know you were capable of doing. You're possessed. Remember that? The difficult thing isn't the beginning. It's the ending. One day you reached that goal. And somewhere you lost that fight, that desire. Now you're slipping. And if you don't catch yourself you'll be right back where you started. Or even worse? You'll fall so far to where your existence is non-existent. Somewhere your determination and ambition died. It's about production. Steps forward. If you're not getting better, you're getting worse. Be afraid to fail. You do have to prove yourself. Everyday. There's the ones who are happy to be there. And there's the ones who want to stay. That's where the separation begins. Today is your last. Treat it as such. And then you have nothing to regret. Never get comfortable. Life and opportunities cannot pass you by.

---EOB.

My Shot

I'm beaten and confused, my feet glued to the floor.I can't move no more. I can't shoot no more. There was a moment people would respect what I used to do on the floor. Always been out-sized. Playing out of my mind. Glide. I was blocking the shots of the 6-4s. Now I stand confused. I just can't shoot no more.

My mind rewinds through time. I climb to the peak of the mountain and I view a playground where moments seemed more simple. Dribble. Shoot. Score. That was it. It's easy to remember when you never forget. I just can't shoot no more. My elders taught me the art. Dad said there's something about it, something about the aura which makes you feel like a man. There's something soothing about moving through the game's obstacles, holding your fate in your hands. The mechanics are simple, leading to a flawless finish. Determination married to communication can replenish the void in your stroke, which unexpectedly diminished. The secret to it all lies within it, draws the period to finish the sentence. The basics rules have always been my tools. Learned it from two individuals who walk far away from the avenue of fools. Your right hand is your release. The other is your guide. The end result was always left to fate. And for a moment, everything I shot seemed to drop. Now it's not. The game's become closer. Another element which thickens the plot.

My mind is inhabited by pertubation. Commotion. Disgusted looks on my face when I see them going through the motions. And the best players never have to think. Maybe that's where I've gone wrong. I've lost my way. And I have no more shoulders to lean on. Forced to find other options, since my shot's gone cold. I've learned to move in the post. Develop the moves few know. Rebound and block shots. A key for the lock. Effort rewinds the clock. I want my mind. Find peace within the game. It made a better man out of me. And I'm afraid of losing the one thing which differiates me from you. So I continue to train. I can rebound. I can pass. I can defend.I can play both ends of the court. But those aren't things I was put here to do. I was put here to shoot. No Pitino. No McHale. But I wait for it to walk through that door.

I continue to train until it returns. What am I to do? I can't shoot. I just can't shoot no more.

---EOB.