We Need You...

I have felt a strong sense of uneasiness today. The uneasiness started yesterday afternoon when I heard that, Redskin football player, Sean Taylor had been critically wounded in his home with his girlfriend and daughter present. I'm not a serious Redskin fan. I know who Sean Taylor is, but I couldn't tell you what position he plays. But the violent invasion of his home and the senseless act that followed really upset me. I started praying.

I prayed. I didn't pray for Sean Taylor the professional, All-Pro, football player. I prayed for the Black man, the son, the father, the boyfriend, the friend, the cousin, the co-worker, the giver, the smile, the laughter, the intellect, the stature, the breath, the spirit. The unexplained violence against another Black man made me sick to my stomach. I prayed for healing. I prayed for the healing of our people. I prayed for the healing of his body. I prayed for his family...as I have for countless other Black men who have been victims of violent crimes against them.

I woke today to hear that Sean Taylor had died earlier in the morning. Wow... Another Black man gone because of senseless violence. I'm tired of this! I'm tired of people hurting other people! I'm tired of senseless violence! I'm tired of Black men dying! We need our Black men. We need our reflection. We need our strength. We need our intellect. We need our role models. We need our determination. We need our history. We need our protectors. We need our supporters. We need our creators. We need our inventors. We need our dreamers. We need our visionaries. We need our future. We need YOU, Black man.

I am thankful for the Black men who have helped shape my life...my daddy (need I say more), my Pop-Pop (set the standard), my brother (I love you), my Godfather (there's something in the name), my husband (my Rock), my son (can't imagine life without you), my brother-in-law (we've got our own thang), my uncles, my cousins, my friends, husbands of my friends, and children of my friends. In the words of Earth, Wind, and Fire, "Be ever wonderful. Time is right in your life tonight. Find your place in among the broadway light. Stay as you are, won't you stay in your own sweet way. Don't let the world change your mind." I need you. We need you. The world needs you...

Jill Scott sings about how much we can do on our own, but the truth is...We need YOU. Take a listen to her live performance in Paris and maybe this will soothe your soul...it has helped mine. May Sean Taylor and all of the other Black men who have died at the hands of violence rest in peace...