Privilege

Check your concessions and entitlement at the door

Privilege and opportunity are a hot topic these days. As the rich get richer and the poor stay the same, it’s easy for us to scream for fairness while holding others to impossible standards as our own personal accountability falls by the wayside. 

You see, for most of us, life is full of choice, or at least I grew up thinking that was true. I grew up poor living in a trailer park, and some years we only received homemade gifts for Christmas because that's what my parents could afford. The adversity I faced at the time was not fully realized until much later in life and only after I broke free and achieved success in life and my career. I used the desire for change and to have the things and experiences I wanted growing up but didn't have as my motivator. In my younger years, I saw adults in my life fail, whether it was keeping a job, mismanaging money, and just outright living in a dumpster fire of a life. Those observations planted seeds in me at a young age for who I didn't want to be when I grew up. 

Over the years I have had some amazing mentors in my life. They have given me life, career, and financial advice sometimes without even realizing it. I am always listening and waiting for the nuggets of wisdom which help me level up. I contribute the humble success in my life to my work ethic and more importantly my drive to learn and grow in the face of every adversity. 

My journey so far, though small compared to others has brought me many places. Over the years I have found that the mirrors we often gaze into only reflect the story we have told ourselves. Life is full of love, pain, success, and failures. However, the scale on which they happen is the result of those stories we have lived. It's here in this thought, that what privilege really is, shines so brightly.  

Sometimes when crafting my thoughts and ideas into a poem or essay I realize how fortunate I am to have the freedom to think. I mean really, how arrogant am I to complain or long for more when I have been afforded the privilege to have and want more than I can ever need? Whether I worked for my privilege or it was handed to me in ways that I am still trying to comprehend, one thing is for sure, I will not take it for granted. 

Recently, I traveled into a rural area of North Carolina. Over the last few years, I have spent quite a bit of time there but I have not been in such a depressed area as this. The artist in me could not get enough of the photographic opportunities that resonated with me. The inspiration to shoot photos and write was coursing through my veins, the energy I felt was unreal. 

It wasn't until that rush of being somewhere new and exploring a new land subsided that I was able to put down in words what the experience had shown me. Privilege is not just about race and sex, there is a geographic privilege that many of us have been able to capitalize on. Nonetheless there are parts of our country that have bad schools, no jobs, and no way to learn or travel and escape the life that holds them back.

As our society continues to evolve and each generation tries to right the wrongs of history, there is hope for a better future. I have learned to check my privilege at the door and help others in any way I can. We all need mentors to grow, so don't pass up the opportunity to return the favor whenever you can.