Twenty-one years ago, God blessed me with a tremendous gift.  He also placed upon me a great responsibility.  That responsibility was to raise a strong, God fearing, respectful, African American male that would grow up to become a positive contributor to our society.  I took and still take this responsibility seriously.  Yes he is 21 but there are still many life lessons to be learned.

We have had a rash of shootings in my hometown and the numbers are staggering.  Fifty-one was the number yesterday.  Three more took place today.  I thought of my son after hearing that number and PRAYED that he would not become number fifty-five.

These random acts of violence could cause me to become paranoid and cynical but I REFUSE to allow the ignorance of violence to control my emotions.  My son goes to work everyday and attends college to better his career options.  He is a respectful son and he pays his taxes to support our economy.  Yes, God has blessed me with a tremendous gift and I believe that I am fulfilling my responsibility of teaching him how to walk into his manhood as a positive contributor to our society.  With Gods’ protection and my son remembering to stay alert and to be aware of his surroundings, HE WILL NOT BE NUMBER 55!!!!