I_Now__Stand

I NOW STAND FIRM

I
now stand firm.
My conviction of the power of knowledge
is the platform upon which my podium rests.
I stand firm,
strong, and now free.
Free of anger.
Free of self-delusion.
Free of the folly of empty vanity, and
Free of the pernicious bane
of meaningless pride without substance.

I stand free
to look upon the eyes of other men,
reflecting dignity over sorrow, and
accomplishment over pain;
I stand
with a burning passion,
fueled by the very flame
that forged ancestral shackles,
with a deep sense of pride
and a pride that flows deep.

I now stand erect!
The steel that once degraded my father,
that chained him in bondage to this bitter Earth,
now reinforce my character,
making me more, rather than less;
And the blood and sweat
that once drenched his brow,
now rage with resolve
and a sense of purpose
within my burning breast.

I now stand
As a new being--
neither simply African
nor simply American,
but a hybrid
forced to transcend
the sum of my parts;
No longer simply African,
since being torn away from the African motherland
to suffer and toil in the fields of America,
and more than simply American,
after being forced to be more than
simply American
just to survive within the bowels of this prosperous land.

Thus,
I stand now armed—
Armed with the wisdom of deprivation,
the courage of my conviction,
and a deep conviction of my courage;
And fortified--
with the confidence of a survivor,
the empowerment of knowledge, and
a ravishing hunger for greatness.

I now stand
the product of love,
struggle, and sacrifice;
a witness to man's
inhumanity to man, and
a monument to the hopes
and dreams of a million slaves.
I stand
embraced by my creator,
as God now smiles
upon my people.

Yes,
I Now Stand Firm.
Firm, Black, and Free.

Eric L. Wattree, Sr.