Young World - January 2013
His Story
On January 21, 2013, the whole world paused to watch and listen as historic
moments were written into tomorrow’s history books. As if scripted for a television
series, President Barack Obama took the Presidential Oath of Office on the Martin
Luther King, Junior holiday. The irony of the moment is not lost on those who fought
so hard for so long to gain equal consideration in all areas of society. On the same mall
where folks were showered by the prophetic declarations of Dr. King, millions stood to
capture that moment in time.
In reading President Obama’s books about his life, you quickly get the sense that
the kid named Barry Obama was not born into high society; nor was he raised to be
the supreme ruler of anything. He was an ordinary kid born to an interracial couple.
Just as many of the youth in our community struggle with issues today, Barry Obama
struggled with identity issues, “broken” family issues, family financial issues and a
whole host of other issues that continue to plague young people all over the world.
Through all of the issues, young Barry Obama learned early the value of
education. Through the insistence and assistance of his mother, he studied long and
hard through school, played sports and made good grades. As he began to choose his
path in life, he knew that education would be essential for him to reach his goals. For
all of his hard work in elementary, middle and high school, Barry Obama found himself
pursuing a Law Degree at one of the most prestigious schools in the US. The years of
hard work in grade school were practice for the hard work and long hours necessary to
finish law school. The President we see on television today is the result of a series of
hard-fought battles over a long period of time. During any one of those battles, young
Barry Obama could have given up. He could simply have been satisfied with doing just
well enough. Or, he could have set his aspirations so low that it would not have required
half of the work or discipline.
Because Barry Obama, the boy, pursued excellence back then, we give deference
to President Barack H. Obama now. This is his story. What chapters are you writing
in your story? At some point in the future, you will look back over the patterns, habits
and efforts of your youth and they will lead you to the measure of success that you have
achieved. To put it in different terms, the way you do what you do right now, is a pretty
good measure of how you will do what you do during your adult years. I hope the road
you are paving with today's efforts will sustain and support tomorrow’s travels.
Each of us will have a story to tell. Or rather, each of us will have our story told.
The measure of success, happiness, riches or rewards is not in how much money you
have or things you accumulate. The true story of each man or woman will be in how
much we change the world around us, rather than how much we were changed by the
world. I like to think that I write good things in the story of my life by helping young
people every day. I pray that somewhere ages and ages hence, someone will smile when
they talk about my life and say, “That was His Story”!
Begin your legacy today in the hopes of having a better tomorrow! Be Young! Have Fun!
Columnist Chris Dinkins is an educator and native South Carolinian. His viewpoint is based on
personal, classroom and volunteer experiences. Send questions and comments about youth related issues
to him at youngworld.scarolina@gmail.com.
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