The Grand Rapids Times
11-28-2008
By Marcel Gamble
I dedicate this article to Alvin. Your words of wisdom were definitely inspiration for this piece.
Many young men are living their lives behind a lie.
As Alvin would say, “The only time they call themselves men is or when they have a gun in their hand or when they are on top of women engaging in sex, and the women are saying that they are the man.”
You, young men out there who believe you are gangsters, some of you really got things twisted.
You see, to be a gangster you have to be a man; and some of you all are not men.
A man looks people in their eyes. His eyes do not wander when he is having a conversation.
A man is able to hug another man because he is secure about his manhood. Most of you so - called gangsters begin to trip when a man is within two feet of your face.
You see, a man handles his own battles. He doesn’t call his boys to have a 15 against 1 brawl.
That’s not gangster; that’s straight up punkish. Anybody can be seen as the man when their boys have their back, but what happens when their so - called boys disappear?
Not to downplay women, but most of you gangsters have the same attributes and characteristics as women.
Could this be the reason why women are attracted to gangsters?
Maybe the gangster image of a gangster doesn’t attract a woman. Maybe the woman within the gangster attracts women.
So, to you all reading this who are caught up on maintaining a gangster image, you should stop trying.
Don’t pretend to be something that you are not.
If you are intelligent, then don’t have your butt out on the corner smoking weed.
If you have goals and ambitions, then get out of the drive by cars and go after accomplishing your goals.
Believe me. I once was confused about what a man was, and I had to learn the hard way of what a gangster truly is.
I am thankful today that I still have my life; but some of you all might not be granted a second chance. That’s why so many people are trying to help you all get it right the first time.
It is so important that you all listen and stop being hard - headed.
I am able to say that I am a man; and I want all my peers to be able to say the same.
Email me at marcelgamble@sbcglobal.net and let me know if you know what it means to be a real man.
Saturday, November 29, 2008
Friday, November 21, 2008
Teens Talk - Car Pool
The Grand Rapids Times
11/21/2008
By Marcel Gamble
Many of us have had to endure the awkward experience of car pooling.
You can remember the time when you and Susie from the neighborhood were going to the same summer camp and mama didn’t want to waste money on gas.
So she made you ride to camp with little Susie and her parents.
Well, currently that isn’t the case anymore. Car pooling really doesn’t exist now.
It doesn’t exist because of fear. The fear is a result of a few bad youth involved in violence.
There is fear that this young man might have drugs on him because he is labeled as a drug dealer.
There is fear that this young man might have a gun on him because he is known as a gang banger.
Since youth can no longer be trusted, and car pooling no longer takes place anymore, then what is the point of incorporating time and marking dates on your calendar to spend with youth?
This is the attitude of so many people who are already where they need to be in life; individuals who have made it to college and people who have their careers.
This is the attitude of people who have forgotten that they used to be these youth in the past.
You see, people still believe that carpooling is all about saving gas; but car pooling is about saving lives.
You might not realize it; but by guiding a youth in the right direction, you are car pooling.
You are offering a seat in your car so someone else can become successful in life.
Do not turn your back on disengaged youth because there once was a time when someone had to lift you up and brush you off to car pool you in the right direction.
It’s good to know where you are going but don’t ever forget where you are from.
I would like to commend an organization called Urban Young Life for remaining faithful towards upcoming youth.
I want to commend them for believing that the children of today are somebody and will continue to be somebody.
Quentin Henry and to the rest of the Urban Young Life organization, I want to thank you for car pooling for our leaders of tomorrow.
I’m going to leave you all with this, Ezekial 1:2, Our inheritance is turned to strangers, our houses to aliens.
Since our inheritance must go to strangers and our houses to aliens then why should we have a problem investing time into our leaders of tomorrow?
Marcel Gamble, a 2008 graduate of Kelloggsville High School, is a student at Calvin College.
11/21/2008
By Marcel Gamble
Many of us have had to endure the awkward experience of car pooling.
You can remember the time when you and Susie from the neighborhood were going to the same summer camp and mama didn’t want to waste money on gas.
So she made you ride to camp with little Susie and her parents.
Well, currently that isn’t the case anymore. Car pooling really doesn’t exist now.
It doesn’t exist because of fear. The fear is a result of a few bad youth involved in violence.
There is fear that this young man might have drugs on him because he is labeled as a drug dealer.
There is fear that this young man might have a gun on him because he is known as a gang banger.
Since youth can no longer be trusted, and car pooling no longer takes place anymore, then what is the point of incorporating time and marking dates on your calendar to spend with youth?
This is the attitude of so many people who are already where they need to be in life; individuals who have made it to college and people who have their careers.
This is the attitude of people who have forgotten that they used to be these youth in the past.
You see, people still believe that carpooling is all about saving gas; but car pooling is about saving lives.
You might not realize it; but by guiding a youth in the right direction, you are car pooling.
You are offering a seat in your car so someone else can become successful in life.
Do not turn your back on disengaged youth because there once was a time when someone had to lift you up and brush you off to car pool you in the right direction.
It’s good to know where you are going but don’t ever forget where you are from.
I would like to commend an organization called Urban Young Life for remaining faithful towards upcoming youth.
I want to commend them for believing that the children of today are somebody and will continue to be somebody.
Quentin Henry and to the rest of the Urban Young Life organization, I want to thank you for car pooling for our leaders of tomorrow.
I’m going to leave you all with this, Ezekial 1:2, Our inheritance is turned to strangers, our houses to aliens.
Since our inheritance must go to strangers and our houses to aliens then why should we have a problem investing time into our leaders of tomorrow?
Marcel Gamble, a 2008 graduate of Kelloggsville High School, is a student at Calvin College.
Saturday, November 15, 2008
Teens Talk - Double Dutch
The Grand Rapids Times
11-14-2008
By Marcel Gamble
Jump in little girl; jump in;
The rope will not stop turning.
1964, your family hosed down to the floor;
Two decades away, a man is beaten to death for being gay.
The drinking fountains are rusty;
The bathrooms for you to use are dusty.
Innocent heroes are beaten for pleasure and ridiculous reasons.
Slave owners fornicate with heroes that they love to hate;
You are a prime example of what rape use to create.
Stop, do not celebrate; your heart should be filled with hate.
Jump in, little girl, jump in and gaze to see
two married heroes hanging from a tree
Jump, little girl, with me; and familiarize yourself
on how life used to be.
See how the past resembles now and how now resembles the past.
Make room for all heroes that are placed in one class.
Do not stop jumping; keep your heart pumping.
Jump into hurricane Katrina see thousands living in trailers provided by FEMA.
Jump into 9/11 and bless the souls on their way to heaven.
Jump, little girl, jump.
Jump right into Iraq and see millions of soldiers
lying flat on their backs;
Jump into Rwanda but bring a tissue for your eyes –
See limbs removed from bodies, become a witness to genocide.
Jump into a neighborhood where gangsters battle for a throne;
See thugs dying for a corner that they will never own;
Take a crack rock as a souvenir and photos of the block to tell others you have been here.
Jump into a society that’s controlled by men in million dollar tuxedos.
Don’t jump too far, little girl, because they tell heroes where to go and who to know.
Jump but avoid becoming a puppet in a puppet show
Now, jump and do tricks; do some twists and turns;
Make sure you give the other children a turn.
Everyone must become educated, so they must learn.
Jump, little boy, jump.
No! I don’t feel like jumping today;
Let’s play another game; its time for a change.
No more jumping, no more reason for my heart to be pumping,
My feet stand firm because my time for jumping is over.
Stop turning the rope; the little girl’s legs are tired.
Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. marched for us to get higher.
Langston Hughes spoke of a dream differed, but we will never expire.
Madam C.J. Walker created the perm so that we can be flyer.
Spike lee said, “Do the right thing.”
So stop turning because she is tired.
Ghandi fought in peace, and Chavez hit the streets.
Little girl, these people jumped so we wouldn’t have to jump anymore.
Now you can hang the rope up;
we don’t have to Double Dutch no more.
Double Dutch
The way some people live is similar to the way that scratched CDs play in CD players. They never get past a certain part in a song.
Some people get scratched in life and never heal appropriately; this hinders them from truly experiencing the rest of life.
Everyone experiences depressing times that may damper their spirits and cause them to lose motivation.
During this period of time, many of us begin to Double Dutch.
We begin to Double Dutch to the past to find excuses to why we aren’t succeeding in the present.
Some of us jump to the past not to lift ourselves up today but to find excuses not to succeed tomorrow.
It doesn’t matter what race you are, your descendents did not put their lives on the line for you to Double Dutch.
They didn’t fight so that you can jump and come up with thousands of reasons to why you can’t go to work.
You should be thankful that you have the job you have.
Heroes before you did not boycott just so you would have the opportunity to stand your butt on a street corner.
Too many of us are choosing to Double Dutch.
Individuals before would have died to have the opportunities that we have, to be accurate they did die.
Why are we so quick to jump rope and so slow to pick up on our responsibilities?
Why would we want to share the same characteristics as a scratched CD and be stuck on something that prevents us from moving on in life.
When we jump rope, we are only hurting ourselves we fail because we speak failure and place failure into our lives.
Rosa Parks didn’t overcome her fears to sit in the front of the bus for us to give up now.
All of the greats before our time paved the way for us to become successful beings.
I call them heroes because they said that there would be change and indeed in the year of 2008 there is change.
My generation and generations under me we can be thankful for this change or we can act ignorant and throw away an opportunity that many of us have waited many years for.
It is all up to us to change or to Double Dutch.
Email me at marcelgamble@sbcglobal.net and tell me how you plan to put down the rope.
I’m going to leave you all with this; the future is yours; don’t fall short of utilizing it by Double Dutching.
11-14-2008
By Marcel Gamble
Jump in little girl; jump in;
The rope will not stop turning.
1964, your family hosed down to the floor;
Two decades away, a man is beaten to death for being gay.
The drinking fountains are rusty;
The bathrooms for you to use are dusty.
Innocent heroes are beaten for pleasure and ridiculous reasons.
Slave owners fornicate with heroes that they love to hate;
You are a prime example of what rape use to create.
Stop, do not celebrate; your heart should be filled with hate.
Jump in, little girl, jump in and gaze to see
two married heroes hanging from a tree
Jump, little girl, with me; and familiarize yourself
on how life used to be.
See how the past resembles now and how now resembles the past.
Make room for all heroes that are placed in one class.
Do not stop jumping; keep your heart pumping.
Jump into hurricane Katrina see thousands living in trailers provided by FEMA.
Jump into 9/11 and bless the souls on their way to heaven.
Jump, little girl, jump.
Jump right into Iraq and see millions of soldiers
lying flat on their backs;
Jump into Rwanda but bring a tissue for your eyes –
See limbs removed from bodies, become a witness to genocide.
Jump into a neighborhood where gangsters battle for a throne;
See thugs dying for a corner that they will never own;
Take a crack rock as a souvenir and photos of the block to tell others you have been here.
Jump into a society that’s controlled by men in million dollar tuxedos.
Don’t jump too far, little girl, because they tell heroes where to go and who to know.
Jump but avoid becoming a puppet in a puppet show
Now, jump and do tricks; do some twists and turns;
Make sure you give the other children a turn.
Everyone must become educated, so they must learn.
Jump, little boy, jump.
No! I don’t feel like jumping today;
Let’s play another game; its time for a change.
No more jumping, no more reason for my heart to be pumping,
My feet stand firm because my time for jumping is over.
Stop turning the rope; the little girl’s legs are tired.
Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. marched for us to get higher.
Langston Hughes spoke of a dream differed, but we will never expire.
Madam C.J. Walker created the perm so that we can be flyer.
Spike lee said, “Do the right thing.”
So stop turning because she is tired.
Ghandi fought in peace, and Chavez hit the streets.
Little girl, these people jumped so we wouldn’t have to jump anymore.
Now you can hang the rope up;
we don’t have to Double Dutch no more.
Double Dutch
The way some people live is similar to the way that scratched CDs play in CD players. They never get past a certain part in a song.
Some people get scratched in life and never heal appropriately; this hinders them from truly experiencing the rest of life.
Everyone experiences depressing times that may damper their spirits and cause them to lose motivation.
During this period of time, many of us begin to Double Dutch.
We begin to Double Dutch to the past to find excuses to why we aren’t succeeding in the present.
Some of us jump to the past not to lift ourselves up today but to find excuses not to succeed tomorrow.
It doesn’t matter what race you are, your descendents did not put their lives on the line for you to Double Dutch.
They didn’t fight so that you can jump and come up with thousands of reasons to why you can’t go to work.
You should be thankful that you have the job you have.
Heroes before you did not boycott just so you would have the opportunity to stand your butt on a street corner.
Too many of us are choosing to Double Dutch.
Individuals before would have died to have the opportunities that we have, to be accurate they did die.
Why are we so quick to jump rope and so slow to pick up on our responsibilities?
Why would we want to share the same characteristics as a scratched CD and be stuck on something that prevents us from moving on in life.
When we jump rope, we are only hurting ourselves we fail because we speak failure and place failure into our lives.
Rosa Parks didn’t overcome her fears to sit in the front of the bus for us to give up now.
All of the greats before our time paved the way for us to become successful beings.
I call them heroes because they said that there would be change and indeed in the year of 2008 there is change.
My generation and generations under me we can be thankful for this change or we can act ignorant and throw away an opportunity that many of us have waited many years for.
It is all up to us to change or to Double Dutch.
Email me at marcelgamble@sbcglobal.net and tell me how you plan to put down the rope.
I’m going to leave you all with this; the future is yours; don’t fall short of utilizing it by Double Dutching.
Friday, November 7, 2008
Teens Talk - Tears of Joy
November 4, 2008, will be a day that will always be remembered because it is the day that America fulfilled the dreams of millions of people.
It is the day that so many others and I cried tears of joy.
This is the day that Barrack Obama was selected to become the next President of The United States.
America we have come far.
There used to be a time when individuals of African American descent weren’t allowed to become elected officials; well, America, we have come far.
Some of us were and still are in awe of America’s decision to elect Barrack Obama, while others of us continue to cry tears of joy.
We cry because in our generation we have the opportunity to experience the dream that we have read about in textbooks.
If Martin Luther King Jr. were here, he would say, “America we are free at last.”
We cry because as a country we have made it.
No longer is the United States of America a white nation; it is a unified nation with all races interacting with each other.
So many people have died while fighting for change and change has finally arrived.
Unfortunately, many civil rights leaders did not live to witness the electing of Barrack Obama.
They are not here with us because they decided to give their lives so that my generation and I would see better days.
Now that we have better days, let’s not take them for granted.
My minority brothers and sisters, stop embarrassing yourself and this nation and put on some clothes that fit.
Women, we don’t need to see your body– a part hanging out of tight clothing; and men, everyone doesn’t need to see your pants down to your ankles.
America is beginning to clean-up and change. It is time for us to do the same.
If you are not in school, then get your butt in school.
If you are a drug addict, it is time to put down the harmful substances and get into rehab.
America is pushing for change; and you should be too.
We can’t fight for change and not want to change ourselves.
I have tears of joy. The history I used to learn about no longer is history; now it is present.
Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. and so many others can now rest because, America, we have made it.
If you are an individual that doesn’t like the change that is occurring, oh well, it is happening any way.
You have the choice of fighting it, or you can have tears of joy.
I’m going to leave you with this: “An ignorant person will never succeed in this world because their jealous ways stops them from doing so. ”
It is the day that so many others and I cried tears of joy.
This is the day that Barrack Obama was selected to become the next President of The United States.
America we have come far.
There used to be a time when individuals of African American descent weren’t allowed to become elected officials; well, America, we have come far.
Some of us were and still are in awe of America’s decision to elect Barrack Obama, while others of us continue to cry tears of joy.
We cry because in our generation we have the opportunity to experience the dream that we have read about in textbooks.
If Martin Luther King Jr. were here, he would say, “America we are free at last.”
We cry because as a country we have made it.
No longer is the United States of America a white nation; it is a unified nation with all races interacting with each other.
So many people have died while fighting for change and change has finally arrived.
Unfortunately, many civil rights leaders did not live to witness the electing of Barrack Obama.
They are not here with us because they decided to give their lives so that my generation and I would see better days.
Now that we have better days, let’s not take them for granted.
My minority brothers and sisters, stop embarrassing yourself and this nation and put on some clothes that fit.
Women, we don’t need to see your body– a part hanging out of tight clothing; and men, everyone doesn’t need to see your pants down to your ankles.
America is beginning to clean-up and change. It is time for us to do the same.
If you are not in school, then get your butt in school.
If you are a drug addict, it is time to put down the harmful substances and get into rehab.
America is pushing for change; and you should be too.
We can’t fight for change and not want to change ourselves.
I have tears of joy. The history I used to learn about no longer is history; now it is present.
Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. and so many others can now rest because, America, we have made it.
If you are an individual that doesn’t like the change that is occurring, oh well, it is happening any way.
You have the choice of fighting it, or you can have tears of joy.
I’m going to leave you with this: “An ignorant person will never succeed in this world because their jealous ways stops them from doing so. ”
Saturday, November 1, 2008
Teens Talk - Aquafina
The Grand Rapids Times
10-31-2008
When people need to use the restroom, they stop whatever they are doing at the time, and they use the restroom.
When they are hungry, they eat; and when they are thirsty, they drink.
I have one question – why do people display a since of being thirsty more than they show that they are hungry and etc.?
I’m not referring to being thirsty after a strenuous workout, I am talking about being thirsty during your every day activity.
We all have those days when we need our pure water.
When I see a young lady that is not completely dressed and I decide to make comments about her figure, there is no question about it – I am thirsty.
I am not only thirsty for the lady I am making rude remarks about, I am also thirsty for some pure “aquafina” water.
If people around me ask me to drink liquor during the weekend and I decide to because I had a rough week, then, unquestionably, I am thirsty for pure “aquafina” water.
God throws “aquafina” at us on daily basis, but a majority of us decide to reach for another liquid to quench our thirst.
When your teenage boyfriend is pressuring you to have sex, take a swig of “aquafina”; leave those other drinks alone.
When your friends tell you that it’s okay to get behind the wheel of a car under the influence, you need to give up the keys and find you some “aquafina”.
You see “aquafina” is a pure liquid and God is also pure. By sinning everyday, we are telling God that we are thirsty for Him and we are telling Him to provide us with “aquafina”.
The “aquafina” is the guidance that we strive to receive from God each day.
Someone should have told the individual who murdered Jenifer Hudson’s mother, brother, and nephew to drink some “aquafina”.
We all can tell when there are masses of people who chose to pick up other liquids and not “aquafina”.
Someone decided to pick up other liquids the night my uncle was murdered. There are a number of other people who can relate to that.
Everyday when a woman is beaten by her man, other liquids are involved.
Every minute when rape occurs, another person is corrupted who makes the choice to turn down pure “aquafina” from God tothey up other drinks from the devil.
Staying pure is the way to go if you don’t already get some “aquafina” in your life.
Accept God’s hands when He holds them out to you; don’t run to what you know is wrong.
I’m going to leave you all with this, everyone personally has to learn how to use discernment, don’t give others the opportunity to choose your path for you.
Marcel Gamble, a 2008 graduate of Kelloggsville High School, is a student at Calvin College.
10-31-2008
When people need to use the restroom, they stop whatever they are doing at the time, and they use the restroom.
When they are hungry, they eat; and when they are thirsty, they drink.
I have one question – why do people display a since of being thirsty more than they show that they are hungry and etc.?
I’m not referring to being thirsty after a strenuous workout, I am talking about being thirsty during your every day activity.
We all have those days when we need our pure water.
When I see a young lady that is not completely dressed and I decide to make comments about her figure, there is no question about it – I am thirsty.
I am not only thirsty for the lady I am making rude remarks about, I am also thirsty for some pure “aquafina” water.
If people around me ask me to drink liquor during the weekend and I decide to because I had a rough week, then, unquestionably, I am thirsty for pure “aquafina” water.
God throws “aquafina” at us on daily basis, but a majority of us decide to reach for another liquid to quench our thirst.
When your teenage boyfriend is pressuring you to have sex, take a swig of “aquafina”; leave those other drinks alone.
When your friends tell you that it’s okay to get behind the wheel of a car under the influence, you need to give up the keys and find you some “aquafina”.
You see “aquafina” is a pure liquid and God is also pure. By sinning everyday, we are telling God that we are thirsty for Him and we are telling Him to provide us with “aquafina”.
The “aquafina” is the guidance that we strive to receive from God each day.
Someone should have told the individual who murdered Jenifer Hudson’s mother, brother, and nephew to drink some “aquafina”.
We all can tell when there are masses of people who chose to pick up other liquids and not “aquafina”.
Someone decided to pick up other liquids the night my uncle was murdered. There are a number of other people who can relate to that.
Everyday when a woman is beaten by her man, other liquids are involved.
Every minute when rape occurs, another person is corrupted who makes the choice to turn down pure “aquafina” from God tothey up other drinks from the devil.
Staying pure is the way to go if you don’t already get some “aquafina” in your life.
Accept God’s hands when He holds them out to you; don’t run to what you know is wrong.
I’m going to leave you all with this, everyone personally has to learn how to use discernment, don’t give others the opportunity to choose your path for you.
Marcel Gamble, a 2008 graduate of Kelloggsville High School, is a student at Calvin College.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)