Reach - Then Teach Derrick Brown

[1-16-2017] Being part of a church has helped me to grow - both in my walk with God, and in my understanding of life and people.Church helped me to wake up, grow up, speak up, and wise up. The experience has not always been "pretty" - but has taught me key lessons ...* Your gifts can become weapons (against you and others) without the BALANCE of healing and accepting, affirming, accountable, authoritative relationships (SEE TABLE BELOW).* Hurt people hurt people.* Healed people help people heal.* People who help people sometimes exploit the people they help - and the people who help them.* We are all mentors to each other through shared life experiences - good, bad, and ugly.* Your mentor's good works are beacons of light that show you the path; his missteps are clear warnings to you. Take heed.

[3-3-2017] A long time ago (1997) in Petersburg, VA (where my wife Keisha was born and raised), Tim and Daphne Maxwell Reid launched New Millennium Studios - a 15,000-square-foot full-service movie production studio on 60 acres of land ... land with a rich Civil War history. It was the only full-service movie production studio in the state of Virginia. Tim Reid (a native of Norfolk, VA) may be best known as "Ray" - Tia and Tamera's dad on the 1990's sitcom "Sister, Sister". He was also the star of the underrated, award-winning 1980's CBS sitcom "Frank's Place". Daphne Maxwell Reid was "Aunt Viv" (the second one) on "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air". She was also on "Frank's Place". After me and Keisha married in March 2011, that Christmas holiday I took her to New Millennium Studios for their guided tour. We arrived and thought we were the only guests who signed up for our time slot. It turned out that we were the only 2 people in the studio besides Tim and Daphne. Daphne was our tour guide. This lady epitomizes style and elegant grace. She explained that the Steven Spielberg movie "Lincoln" had just wrapped up filming at New Millennium. That was part of the reason why it was so quiet during our visit. She took the time to tell us the history of the studio, the land it sat on, and the reality of the tough times they were enduring. Their vision was for New Millennium to become the centerpiece of a Virginia film community. The growth of their business in Virginia was hindered, though, by a lack of state-supported film production financial incentives. As she led us through their offices, I spotted Tim Reid at his desk and we made eye contact ...

[2-26-2017] Charles Darrow lost his job as a heater salesman at the beginning of The Great Depression in 1929. He then created, patented, copyrighted, and licensed Monopoly between 1933 and 1935 - but Monopoly was based on versions of real estate trading games whose patents date back to 1904. Why did Darrow's version flourish - making him the first millionaire game designer? Well, two lessons come to mind ...

[3-5-2017] A long time ago, a movie called "The Matrix" captured our attention. The movie conveyed that reality was not "real" - but simulated and imagined. It made lots of "real" money, though. A few years after, author Sophia Stewart sued the key players behind "The Matrix" for copyright infringement. She also sued the key players behind "The Terminator". She alleged that both movies were based on works she created in the early 1980s. Court documents show that Stewart did not win her lawsuit. They also suggest that she did not win because her case was legally difficult to prove - not necessarily because it was false. Stewart had to show that the defendants viewed her works, and had to show how they were incorporated into both films ...

[3-17-2017] American history has not been kind to Paul Robeson. Robeson was a complex individual. Even complex individuals can be erased - one dimension at a time. As an actor and singer, he was erased - even as one of the most powerful and popular performers in the world. As a football player, he was erased - even as a Rutgers University All-American. As a civil rights activist, he was erased ("blacklisted") for his "un-American" support of communism and The Soviet Union. Despite these concerted efforts, we still have choices regarding how we remember Robeson. We can either acknowledge his considerable achievements and prowess - or dismiss them. We either agree on, disagree on, or misunderstand his politics. There are two noteworthy nuggets that have earned my respect, though ...

[2-4-2018] I was able to attend Brother Darryl Robinson's homegoing yesterday. I drove down with Willie Frasier. We met during the 1985 Clemson Career Workshop, too, and have been friends ever since. He shared some great memories of "Cheese" during our ride. He was Cheese's roommate for a while. I never knew, but was not surprised ... not in the least. Yesterday was amazing in more ways than I can recount here ... but I will stick to the highlights. We arrived just after Omega Psi Phi's memorial service ended ...