Opportunity Trumps Everything

To me that is running for statement of the year. I had cocktails with a former professor from my undergraduate years and well lets just say things are different now that I am only a few months away from completing my PhD. Well that's the target I have given myself. I am shooting to have everything complete by July 27, 2010. I will be 40 and will hopefully have completed one of the major academic achievements in my life.. In my conversation with whom I consider my version of Obi Wan Kenobi, he told me that with all the isht going on in my immediate sphere of consciousness will evaporate once I complete the PhD. It's funny because I can here him saying "use the force luke." Within the context of our conversation he made this one quote which has just resonated with me, Opportunity Trumps Everything. When I sat back and absorbed the words, I mean really let the words soak in, I had to start laughing because he spoke the truth. Lets think about it for a second. His analogy was this, if there was a big bag of money, I mean billions of dollars that were untraceable, and it just was thrown at our feet, what would we do? Now I couldn't cart off a billion dollars in broad daylight let alone night time cause that type of cash is physically heavy. But please believe, where there is a way, there is a will. Logic be damned, a cool billion some how would be up in my truck and I would be driving off to somewhere Seville Spain. Seriously, if one could get away with one crime in life, just one transgression, would one do it. To me it is the ultimate test of morality. Like he said, opportunity trumps everything. There has been many a day where I just wanted to go back to all the people whom have wronged me one way or another and exact what I felt was justifiable equalizing. Now that I think about it, I do remember an oldie but a goodie. This goes back to my days with one particular lilliputian white folk female who use to be my supervisor. I was working in what I consider one of the seven hells. I was just recovering from a serious emotional crisis which had me just frazzled. I mean I needed a complete brain dump just to go back to work with this crazy folk. Already coming back into the office after what I had gone through was a feat in and of itself. I mean I had to come back to work drugged up just to do my job. Now this person knew I was emotionally fragile, I mean the very site of this person nauseated me. I remember saying to myself, that's that woman's car, it would look good on fire, preferably with her in it... Needless to say she was not invited to my wedding and I was not invited to her 50th birthday party. Anyway, knowing my state of fragility this crazy woman basically taunted me. I think the goal was to somehow finish the job of firing me on her terms, preferably with me in handcuffs being escorted out by the police.. Here is where opportunity trumps everything. Turns out in the state of North Carolina it is considered assault if you point your finger at another individual in a threatening/hostile manner. Threatening/hostile manner really is something based purely in subjectivity. Me being the subject, well I felt threatened by her hostile behavior. So as opposed to doing what she wanted me to do, which was assault her back-- I mean, deliver a certified asswhippin-- you know the type, come on down cause you the next contestant on catch the beatdown- asswhippin, I didn't take the law into my own hands.. I put the law on her-- translation, I took out a warrant for her arrest. That was an empowering moment for me I have to say because I then reclaimed my power, my sense of identity, my sense of self efficacy. I was so proud of myself for taking a hardline- using the tools of the dominant other against the dominator. I went out that same night with my then fiancee and fired up the biggest cigar I could buy. That said my immediate family is from the old school and were like-- you take those papers back!!!!!!
I was like you kiddin, here is the opportunity to finally put this itch to rest and you want me to let her go. The funny thing was that when I had to meet with the vice president of the school, the chief of security, and the director of human resources,--all whom were white folk, they were astonished. I mean the their white skin turned bone white. I remember saying to them, you didn't take me seriously. I asked you politely, to remedy the situation and you chose to ignore it. So because all of you at this table chose the course being aloof I had to remedy the situation my damn self. I think one of them said, we're listening now. Again, false empathy is something no human should have to endure. it was then where I remember uttering the words of John Singleton's character in the film higher learning..."That remains to be seen.."