It’s *That* We Play the Game

by with No Comment CultureFeaturedSocial IssuesSports

“It doesn’t matter if we win or lose, it’s how we play the game.”

An old cliche that finally made complete, visceral sense to me this past week.

Covid has kept family and friends apart for so long that simple occasions that we once took for granted now feel like an historic achievement.

I got a bunch of family and friends together to play a simple kickball game. There were people present I hadn’t seen in a few years, some for a decade.

With heat, mosquitos, and small children (I had 2 toddlers to corral), I didn’t give us great odds to get though an inning let alone an entire game.

But everyone there seemed to understand the ever rarer ability for occasions like this to happen in these Covid times. Even the young ones, 7 to 14, hustled to their field positions or stepped up to the plate in pro timing with a sense of importance and urgency.

We got through 7 full innings with a very productive game of 3 outs or 5 runs per inning: double plays, home runs, peg outs, force outs, and more.

The young ones weren’t given special treatment so when they got on base or forced an out, there was a real sense of achievement and not a cheap pandering feeling.

I happened to be the final out of the game (I got pegged out representing the tying run). And when we lost, I had perhaps a brief sigh of failure before turning to the overriding sentiment we all shared: SUCCESS! WE HAD COMPLETED A GAME!

I had participated in one of humanity’s longest standing art forms: Sport. Whether to stay physically fit, for enjoyment, or to practice necessary survival skills like hunting or combat, Sport is an all time great achievement of our species.

Knowing I had been part of a successful execution of a single game of kickball was so satisfying, I did not care at all that we had lost.

This is why the Olympics are so important. Sport is happening. Peace is happening.

So much value is placed in winning and that is well and good (it is PART of Sport: to win), but if we do not value the ability to even execute sports, if there is no greater society to functionally host, or if cheating destroys the entire foundation and spirit of a game… then winning means nothing.

The real victory is having any games at all and completing them properly.

This goes for politics as well: the real victory is having a system that allows for fair elections and functioning government at all.

My biggest takeaway from this simple, kickball game is that I will teach my children to play hard, compete with everything they are capable of, and give every last ounce of life to their pursuits – Sport or otherwise; but to value the higher morality most of all: that we even get to play the game – Sport or otherwise.

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CULTURE CON REVIEW: BLACK PEOPLE AT PEACE

by with No Comment CultureFeatured

Remember what it felt like when you walked into Toys R Us (R.I.P. to my guy Geoffrey) as a kid? You almost dislocated your parents shoulder out of the socket you’d be so eager to race towards the aisles. You’d see the other children playing with all the newest toys with joy on their faces.

That’s what it felt like to be at Culture Con 2018. Except this time there was no proverbial parent holding me back from indulging in Black Boy Joy. Culture Con is an amazing one day conference that embodied, both visually and audibly, what it feels like to be a black creative in New York City. There were artists of all ilks represented in the room where it happened.

The color pallette featured the bold colors of the African diaspora encapsulated in an exposed brick Industrial event space on the Brooklyn and Queens border. Half of the space highlighted the corporate sponsors who have invested in growing their Black consumer base. Companies like Essence, BET, Dove, Tidal, and Vaseline to name a few. In the front of the space is where the inspiration bellowed out. Interviews were headlined by John Legend, Charlamagne Tha God, La La Anthony, and hosted by Taylor Rooks.

All of the speakers offered a wealth of information and encouragement on how to best tap into their creative inspirations. I could write full pieces on the pearls of wisdom that were spoken in that room but the one that jumped out to me the most was by 23 year old Tyler Mitchell. Mitchell, the first black photographer to shoot a Vogue cover in their 126 year history, shot the iconic Beyonce cover back in September 2018. While the audience gushed over the thought of being six degrees of separation from Queen Beyonce herself, Mitchell spoke of the inspiration behind his photographs, “In my work I try to elevate the Black body into not being a thing… I just want to shoot photos of Black people at peace.”

Black people at peace? Black people at peace? Black people at peace?

The words are still ringing in my hippocampus as I continue to wonder if my people will ever be at peace with the cultural gnats that continue to nag us on a hourly basis. Let alone capturing what that would look like in high end photographs. Here’s to Tyler Mitchell as he continues on his journey!

However what was most gratifying was the collective soulful vibe of the folks who were in attendance. The style was impeccable and the unity was palpable. You could almost reach out and touch it or taste it dancing on your taste buds. There was heaps of denim, leather, silk, suede, and a smattering of statement pieces that unapologetically affirmed our blackness. My personal favorite was an all black hoodie that read, “I’m Black yall, im Black yall, im Blackity Black I’m Black yall.”

Culture Con was a modern Black Gatsby style celebration of Blackness and boy did it feel good to be surrounded by a room full of like minded humans who not only want to create but continue to leave our indelible mark on American Culture. After all as Jay-Z once said, “We are the culture. Nothing moves without us.” Nothing.

Until we meet again to experience peace and joy together, Culture Con!