Value of Competition

“A competitive world offers two possibilities. You can lose. Or, if you want to win, you can change.”

I remember the surprise and excitement from each lick of my palm. I remember, when the mood of life depended on the tightness of a knotted plastic bag containing the scientific mixture of “red” Kool-Aid and sugar. These red stained hands would grab the metal chains and lean back and forth … back and forth … trying to kick the clouds with my untied shoes. I remember days, I thought my stomach would burst standing in line being evaluated by neighborhood peers, dying for a chance to show my talents.  (I mean baseball was my sport, and kickball was my game but basketball was a work in progress).

These memory have seemingly died in our communities.

Today, I yearn to see the eyes of an achiever who could fight his best friend and in the next breathe, beg his mother to allow him to sleep-over.  I want to hear the voice of a scholar who believes the sky to limit no one.  I thirst to invest in a community which remembers that stealing Kool-Aid from mom’s container; secretly being scared of leaning back too far and falling out the swing; and the danger of peer ridicule on the court, were all active choices.

I chose to endure.

Through each childish adventure, I sought to be the bestest, most fastest,  most talentedest child alive. My competition recognized me as a competitor and challenged my every attempt of domination. No secrets were held about my desire to be the best. Despite, lackluster performances, I made the choice to continue to compete and cause a spectacle. Through tears, skinned knees, fights and teasing, I continued to show up and taunt the opposition with a new approach.

I made the choice of ingenuity.

False manhood, adulthood and sense of accomplishment have soiled the innocence of the journey towards success and the excitement of competition.  I fear the day that a mirror will reflect a man deprived the joy of a  challenged process. Don’t buy into haters, instead remember your inner child without fears and purchase competition that will force you to be a better you. Today, I charge you with the task of endurance, ingenuity, open competition and love for another. Ask yourself today, with whom are you competing? Who is worthy of your competition?

Welcome to Big Business Tuesday!