OneNabi Consulting, Inc.

“Out, out, brief candle! Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player, that struts and frets his hour upon the stage and then is heard no more”

I feel in love with this line (in fact the entire soliloquy) from Shakespeare’s classic play Macbeth during my high school years. It spoke to me about the brevity of life and the dearth of leadership within my community.  As most teenagers I had a developing sense of concern about my ability to do anything meaningful with my life. Through the years, I have tried not only to make good on “giving something back” to the African American community but also to whatever context I find myself.  My life’s work has been made easier by friends I have met along the way who exhibit the same selfless passion and love for community.

Last night, I got a call informing me that someone whom I have adored working with had tragically died in a car accident. I don’t really know how to explain what became of me during the first seconds of the call; I was still but the world around me unashamedly moved on.  Such a surreal experience to hear of a close friend’s death!

I am mourning this great friend and gifted preacher’s death.  In some way I am also mourning the fact that the rest of the world is not also in visible mourning with me.  It seems to me that when you lose someone close to you, the whole world ought be made to stand still and mourn with you.  Yes, it is a nonsensical statement but it is how grief makes you feel.

Grief placed my body, if but for a few seconds, in catatonic shock. Forget the food that needs to be cooked; forget the errands that need to be done; forget the phone that needs to be answered; forget the door that needs to be opened.  Nothing should take place, everything must stand still in honor of the ineffable friendship we once shared.  ”Let it wait” was my visceral reaction.

And now even sleep must wait until I can say, until I have written, until I can share what a wonderful, beautiful person Reverend Joseph Roberson was. Shakespeare was wrong but I’m not mad at Shakespeare.  He didn’t know my friend.  What is more, he didn’t know yours.

Let the “stuff” of life stand still for a few moments.  Call someone you love and tell them how much they mean to you. Don’t send one of those “chain letter” -been “FWDed” fifty million times piece of junk.  Do it the old school way, YOU make the call; this thing is personal.

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South African runner Caster Semenya will be allowed to keep both her prize money and gold medal for winning the 800-meter race at the World Championships held earlier this year in Berlin.  Though the results of her gender tests remain confidential, so much has been alleged about the analysis of the tests that the matter has become the proverbial “cat out of the bag.” Now the chatter of running enthusiasts has kicked into full gear as an intersexed woman who has outward female genitalia and internal male testes must wait for the IAAF (International Association of Athletics Federations) to decide Semenya’s eligibility to continue competing as a woman.

What I find most disturbing about this case is the lengths people will go to in order to protect their notions about what it is to “be a woman” or “be a man” in this world. How many innocent babies have been subject to the sadistic taunts of other children who accused them of “acting” in ways antithetical to their presented gender? How many adults have participated in risky behavior or done things so out of line with their character simply to “prove” themselves or to show how really “masculine” or “feminine” they could be?

Here’s what we know: Caster Semenya loves running and she’s good at it. I certainly hope something will be done so that she and any other runner or athlete like her will be allowed to continue competing.  By the way: Are there any unisex track events for runners? Just a thought…

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I recently read an article that showed how vulnerable the social network site, Facebook is to hackers. The group “Control Your Image” was able to get valuable information about Facebook members by hacking into groups where the administrator was no longer active.  With members’ information, the hackers were able to send out some horrible posts using the members’ names.  Friends were receiving strange messages totally out of character and wondering what was going on with their dear friends

I enjoy Facebook and have been able to catch up to old friends and make new friends through it.  I have always been uncomfortable joining groups, causes and any of those tools (especially those fun little games) that clearly state you will have to allow it to access some  of your profile information in order for you to sign on.  I’ve always felt that was too much access and too much potential for my personal information to be stolen.  Now, once again, I agree with that old saying, “Follow your first mind.”  My sneaky suspicion has proven correct.

Just another reason to enjoy these sites but be careful, very careful.

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