Testimonials of Readings from me...

Testimonials...


A. Del La Costa

"Brian helped me see the impact the planets were having on my life. Once i became aware of how Rave I- Ching worked with the planets, i was able to understand why things happen the way they did and i was able to put myself as an observer and see it for what it really was. I found answers to many question i had, about myself and how certain things would happen to me. I was able to see the patterns in my life that i was drawn to repeating.  With his help i was able to use the knowledge and  keep myself from sabatoging my growth.  As i grow stronger in my search for self, this has been life changing thing for me,  and I appreciate everything that Brian has done to help me understand and get through this process and keep aware of what is happening.

It has impacted it greatly, the science came to me at the turning point in my life and relationship. Brian helped me break things down even farther by his experience showing me my expressions, how i felt and lived were all there ready for me to learn about me and learn to love me for what my mechanics.

I can lookup the planets everyday and their position, and then figure out what houses they fall under, then lookup gate that it falls into through the astrological position.  Then depending on the line it wil tell me what will be playing out during the time the planet is in that position. I am using it everyday, while learning how everything else falls into place, there is so much too learn but with the little bit of information i did learn, it has made an impact and wanting to learn more on how it works. I feel alive knowing the truth."



 S. Snowden

"During my session I learned things about myself that I already knew but doubted. For example: according to my BodyGraph, my spleen is an open center meaning that I don't know when "enough is enough" (which is true) and that I need to learn when to get enough of or let go of certain things. I've learned that this is a part of my make up and while I thought in certain situations I may not have had enough patience, I actually had too much. I also learned that while I should inform others before I impact them, I need to make certain moves when I'm ready and not to make big decisions or any decisions hastily.

I can't really say how it has impacted my life as it is still early BUT I can say this seems to he a tool that I can use to improve my quality of life but the life of my 2 children as well. If I can provide them with a tool that gives them a better understanding of themselves as well as the effect they have on potential relationships, then as a parent that is the greatest gift I can give them other than life itself. There are so many people who get lost trying to follow other individual it's sad. I would like for my children to find their individuality and embrace it including their flaws.

In addition to what I listed above regarding my children I'd have to say just being able to know where my "shortcomings" are and how to use that knowledge to find a partner who will compliment them as I will theirs."

C. Spencer

"Brian has helped me  to see why I do the things that I do or why certain people gravitate to me.  Even as far as why I get treated the way that I do or how people perceive me and how I should react to it. I've learned about what my strategy  and authority is and how to implement it.

There is no "if at all" about it, this Knowledge has definitely changed my life monumentally.  I have learned that being emotional is not necessarily a negative thing. Waiting to respond is a beautiful thing, its like doors opening for me without me even knocking on them. Only initiating when my gut tells me to.  I've noticed ever since I've been introduced to this i've begun to study not only Human Design but other esoteric and metaphysical sciences and I've been able to better grasp the information even if I was introduced to it previously!

 ...besides what I stated above, this profound Knowledge has helped me to gain a better understanding of my children, which has been a tremendous help in raising them as a single parent!  I was almost in tears reading about manifestors and their relationship to generator parents. I understand my son now and we have began the healing process to gaining a closer relationship!!!   Again, the concept of patience and time being my friend  has been working when dealing with them. I also think  another reason why the information resonated so well and so quickly was due to my wonderful analyst who has an innate skill of explaining this intricate information in a way that a beginner can readily comprehend and therefore implement it in their lives."

Thank You Guiding Light TiB!



D. Middleton

"Brian has helped me to have clarity at a time in my life when I was confused and overwhelmed with uncertainties. He encouraged me to not be concerned with unnecessary things in my life, and  to focus on the big picture. To step outside my box and look at the situation from above. I realized that I can't change anyone else only myself.

The knowledge that he gave is priceless and has changed my life for the better. If it wasn't for him I would not be where I am today.

I use everything I listened to and learned in our sessions every day. When something negative is going on around me, instead of allowing the negative to take hold of me, I first decide if this is something that concerns me, if not I walk away. If it concerns me I step outside of the situation to get a better look. I don't make rush decisions and I remain calm. Knowing the type of personality I have thru Brian has given me the ability to take control over my life. Understanding my graph has allowed me to make good decisions and keep pushing forward toward my goals."


E. B.

"Brian helped me to see that where I am in life is where I'm supposed to be! That I am a leader.I'm more focused on my life goals now and even more determined to accomplish what I set out to accomplish. Lastly that the science behind my rave chart tells a pretty accurate story about my life and how I view and handle things in the world. Pretty amazing stuff!

After speaking with him I feel that my life is more aligned and I now know for sure that I can trust my gut instinct. I also know how to decipher between my mind speaking and my gut speaking!

 With what has been shared I have become extremely focused and aware of my environment. I am now cutting people out of my life who I can see more clearly are only out for selfish gain and are not there to encourage me in my endeavors. I now write out my plans for the day so that my frequent "running around" is more productive. AND I know how to quiet the "voices in my head" that try to interfere with my gut's decisions."

Anonymous,  "...thanks again Brian for everything. I didn't expect to get what I got from you. What you do is definitely a help for the masses. Before now I don't think I've seen as clearly as I do now. It was as if you gave me some better glasses than the ones I was wearing and said " here you should be able to see better now

And for sure without question I do. You opened my eyes to see that the path was already laid out for me! Thank you thank you thank you! I would kiss you if I could! I would give you a million dollars if I could!! I mean that! You have know idea what you've done!!!!  Blessings to you my brother!"


C. George

"1. My authority and recognizing the wave of hope and despair.
2. Thinking has a better understanding of life's circuitry. This lends itself to new ways to perceive experience.
3. Designs tenants take one back to a Zen like way of being. Just let it flow."

"Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!! Thank you for introducing me in the manner that you did. I really appreciate the custom and personal delivery. I know that my design is MY design but your delivery helped me to glean so much more understanding. I have about 10 pages of notes for both parts. Secondly, thank you for providing me with me with so many aha moments and clarity. As I am just entering the second phase of my life, it has indeed felt like I'm recovering and licking the wounds of my adolescence and young adulthood. It is comforting and reassuring to know that those actions and consequences had a purpose.  I, like so many others, have casually said "It's all in Divine order" but sometimes that statement has lacked the full faith and confidence needed to be absolutely true." M. N. 


Are you ready to order now? 

If, at this moment, you can afford an Analysis (Reading), you have the link to order, and, if not, let me know and I'll send you some free information that's available to the general public. 

 theintelligentbrother@gmail.com ~ Brian ~ 908.502.1033

Brian,

True Guide ~ 

My Eye! by Brian Holiday-El aka TiB! The Intelligent Brother (A rough draft excerpt of my up and coming book.)

Let's Go!

The Third Eye

My Personal Experience:
In 1999, I was a nineteen year old freshman at NSU, majoring in Political Science and Economics before I switched to Liberal Arts with an emphasis on English. Three years prior I met a man who irrevocably changed my life for the better. In 1996, I entered the front doors of the Old Franklin High School building in Somerset, New Jersey, with a dual motive; to finish school and try my hardest to steer clear of trouble. This was my fifth high school in two states and I was determined to make it my last and final, but what I was totally unaware of was who I was about to meet, and what I was about to be introduced to! My third period of study was History, taught by a man named Mr. Brandon Hardison. He was a short, middle-aged man at the time. “He was a soft-spoken clean cut man with a penetrating gaze glowing through his lenses, him, my eleventh grade history teacher. From his aura there emanated a power that was at, calming yet engaging, peaceful yet compelling, and harmless yet challenging. After just one conversation with him, I resolved my self to a life long commitment to learning, teaching, and self development. I began reading everything I could get my hands on. At sixteen, my interests grew in the areas of, math, economics, science, history, astrology, eschatology, mythology, metaphysics etc. 'all of which I’d soon become critically engaged in! Through our conversations, I developed a great deal of interest in the origin of government which brought me to the likes of Socrates, Plato and Aristotle, so I studied their works in depth. From my eleventh Grade English teacher I took interest in Transatlantic Slavery and the African American experience in the “New Found Land. Following their leads to different authors and historical personalities only served to agitate my hunger for more knowledge and deeper insight. Mr. Hardison didn't return the following year, so aside from sports, music, and socializing on during weekends, I took largely to study and reflection. By the time I'd reached my freshman year in college I had amassed a considerable personal collection of books and literature and was filled with a passion to continue learning everything I could about everything I could . began a think group called Fellowship, that grew from about ten people to about eighty people in three weeks. With no other responsibilities at the time other than maintaining a satisfactory GPA, my days consisted of intense study, and my nights involved in rap sessions with like-minded individuals. But the more my knowledge grew, the more my knowledge of what I didn't know grew as well, so I began meditating on a daily basis figuring that the most important thing to comprehend was my self, so what better way to do so then to look within through meditation.
“Once I returned to college for the Spring semester in 1999, I learned that I did not have housing. A friend of mine I'd met my Junior year in high-school convinced his room mate to allow me to sleep on the floor in their dorm room. They lived on the first floor, so I was able to crawl easily in and out of the their dorm room window . In purview, these were my most productive years academically, maintaining a tenth percentile GPA.
One evening, I was walking through the campus close to mid-night with a friend when my attention began to trail off, into, and around the principle of Unity. I looked at the moon and thought to myself, “the Moon is my Mother.” Contemplating my relationship with the plants and trees and in my mind I thought, “I breathe in what the trees breathe out and the trees breath in what I breathe out.” Passing beneath a tree, I felt the center most point of my brain hatch open and surreptitiously a stupendously blissful ooze pour forth in, through, and through out the center most part of my brain soaking my pineal gland.” It persisted for sometime, overwhelming me with a hyper-acute sense of well-being and harmony. It was truly, up until that point in my life, the most beautiful mental, and physical feeling in the world I'd ever experienced: it was the equivalent to multiple orgasms taking place in the middle of my brain. It was so remarkable that I had to ask the person walking with me, “do you feel that?” He replied confusedly, “feel what?” I knew at that point that it wasn’t happening to him. I remember clearly saying to him,”everything's going to be alright.” As I walked home, the feeling subsided after numerous 'after shocks that felt like, “magmatic” fluid leaking into my pineal. After climbing through the window and settling in a chair in the center of the floor between my two roommates, I went into meditation. I felt peaceful, utterly thankful, humble, yet a bit bewildered at what had just happened. It was magical, majestic, spiritually awesome. What exactly had happened to me?

Who's The Master? Entry Four of the I AM My Wealth series, By Brian Holiday-El aka TiB! The Intelligent Brother

Let's Go!


Who's The Master? Entry Four of the I AM My Wealth series, By Brian Holiday-El aka TiB!  The Intelligent Brother

Since a picture is worth a thousand words, what is the worth of a 'good movie?'  If you're anything like me, when you watch a great film, you not only 'suspend your disbelief,' you enjoy taking something of value from it that can be related to real-life; and, regardless of how long ago the film was brought to market, you'll agree that really good movies never get old and the people who enjoy them the most can see them again and again and never grow tired of watching them: These type of films become the all-time favorites!  Which ones are yours and why? Do tell. 

For example, one of my favorites came out in 1985, directed by Michael Shultz, who also directed Cooley High, Krush Groove, Car Wash, Bustin' Loose with Richard Pryor, Disorderlies, and many many more; most recently Woman Thou Art Loosed, but my favorite, from Mr. Shultz, was, hands down, The Last Dragon!  Can't you just hear the theme music? 
 
In short, there was one scene and two lines from that scene that will forever be embedded in my brain, has and will always be a source of inspiration; and, if you've yet to see this classic, stop reading here because I'm about to let the cat all the way out of the bag.  During a brutal beat down at the hands of a character named Sho'nuff, Leroy, the hero/protagonist, who had, since the beginning of the movie, been on a quest to attain self-mastery through martial arts, was being drowned in a barrel filled with water; all the while Sho'nuff, the villain/antagonist, kept questioning him, over and over, demandingly, "Who's the Master?" Finally, it clicked...and Leroy lifted his head up and said, "I Am!" At that point, he began exuding a golden glow about his aura, and commenced to whooping the living daylights out of Sho'nuff! 



Remember this: 'without a foe, a soldier never knows his strength,' and until one looks deep within, passed the illusions of this world, and sees the 'light that the darkness could not comprehend,' that is the knowledge of your true self, your higher self, your spiritual, divine, immortal self, someone or something is always going to be on your back, taunting you, haggling you, bullying you, controlling you, terrorizing you, tempting you, haunting you, brutalizing you, eating away at you, tricking, deceiving, luring, subverting, and sabotaging you, much like Sho'nuff was treating Leroy; when in reality, what's actually happening is, you're being asked, "Who's the Master?" 

Be it in this life, the next, or many many lifetimes from now, eventually, you're going to have to go within an reach 'beyond the shadow of doubt,' and too say, "I AM!"

Sincerely Yours, 

TiB! 

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Katrina Revisited (Never Forget) by Brian Holiday-El

Let's Go!

True Story!

Remember Katrina??? Can you recall what you were doing on Monday, August 29^th 2005, when Hurricane Katrina struck land in New Orleans, Louisiana??? I do! I was in Atlanta, riding on the Marta, when I saw the front page of the Atlanta Journal & Constitution!!! I couldn't believe my eyes!! You saw them, the people of NOLA, atop the roofs of cars, houses, schools, stores, apartment buildings...and as the days progressed with no response from George W. Bush and the Federal Government, I grew too unsettled to sit still, so I, and two friends of mine, took action! With an XLII camera and a rental car, we drove straight toward New Orleans during a Black Out and State of Emergency.

What followed was a two month journey with New Orleans evacuees and musicians, documenting the relief and recovery efforts, and recording their stories all while traveling from Lake Pontchartrain and the Mississippi River to the Astro Dome in Houston, Texas...even to Pasadena, Hollywood and North to the Lower Bottoms of Oakland. I heard the stories first hand! I know the truth! And, although many of you who read this letter weren’t there, you too have a good idea of what happened. What I'll say is this, Hurricane Katrina and the flooding of New Orleans are two separate events, taking place hours apart!!! Below is never seen before footage of the moments immediately following Hurricane Katrina and the flooding of New Orleans! I narrate, appear as the interviewer, and film some of the scenes. It is my earnest wish that the truth finally be heard from the voices of the natives of New Orleans that survived and lived to tell the tale! Do you agree? I made a vow to myself not to compromise the integrity of the people of New Orleans in the filming of this documentary! Six years ago, Twitter, Face Book and the like, weren't what they are today, so with your help I would like you to watch this video and share it with two other people and keep the thread going. Perhaps it'll come to the attention of someone else willing to help make sure the Real Story finally comes out about Katrina, the levees, the flooding of New Orleans, and the evacuation and displacement of her people.

For more information contact: katrinadocumentary2012@gmail.com

The video below was filmed within the first weeks of Katrina.

Media, Race, & Progress: Passing Through The Rites by Brian Holiday-El

Let's Go!

Provided that the images and messages we receive through the arts and the media are actionable symbols to the subconscious mind and reference points for the conscious mind are accepted facts, the issue of context becomes the crux, the critical point most worthy of delineation and deliberation as it pertains to correcting erroneous and self-destructive thinking and lifestyles in the communities of the people of African descent, but, for a proper perspective, the differences between sex, gender, and principle must be duly noted. Male and female are the sexes; the biological orientations of our species! That is all! Being a male doesn't make one a man! Being a female doesn't make one a woman! Masculine and feminine are gender principles and the two are present within both males and females from birth and how gender is expressed are determined in large part by parents, guardians, family, social environments, and education. The two can MATURE to become a Man and a Woman, respectively, but that is a Maturation Process.

When the community functioned as 'one village' or one Great Family, there was always a Rites of Passage, usually several thousands of years old, that brought boys and girls into the threshold of manhood and womanhood, respectively. The existence of a Rites of Passage is evidence of the monumentally integral nature of becoming a Man or a Woman. Each Rites of Passage graduated the initiate through an education process that was rich and replete with a spiritual, sacred, ritualistic, ceremonial, scientific, determinedly psychologically edifying, holistic organization of fundamental and eternal principles of Sound Living! Needless to say, that vital aspect of our cultural continuity was lost, so, amongst other things, as one educator phrased it, African Americans suffer from, 'prolonged adolescence.' Not having a genuine Rites of Passage is why there are full grown males and females of all ages who are not men and women! Doubly, the absence of a Rites of Passage doesn't eliminate the need for one. On the contrary, the absence of one aggravates and intensifies the utter necessity of one, exasperates the fallout effects of not having one, and becomes a void filled by who knows what!!!! This is CRITICAL to comprehend. The lack of familial and communal cohesiveness predicated upon the greatest positive development of the individual as expressed through the Rites of Passage is why there is such rampant confusion as to the differences and meanings of the male, man, masculine, father, husband, female, woman, mother, wife, feminine phenomena. Couple the fact that the mass distributed depictions of African Americans in media and the arts are in no wise the product of a collective consensus arrived at by African Americans with the absence of a genuine Rites of Passage and you have the perfect recipe for the dysfunctional, current state-of-affairs! The very presence and pervasiveness of an over abundance of negative, self-destructive re-presentations of people of African descent and the preponderance of corporate media conglomerates to exploit trends for the maximization of profits and the elimination of competition, makes it not only healthy, but, from a strategic vantage point, totally necessary to produce, market, and distribute as much power to the people as possible in the form of Media and the Arts. If nothing else, reading Post Traumatic Slave Disorder should have quelled any trepidation towards approaching Nation Building the same way a Master Physician approaches the healing of a sick patient, and an acrobat approaches his or her gymnastic routine...that is as a rigorous Balancing Act!

Having no genuine Rites of Passage is why so many children and people of adult age, struggle with issues of sex, sexuality, identity, and purpose! Struggling with those four alone can take many lifetimes if uninterrupted by the informing and enlightening efforts of the people who know better. What the people need to recognize from it's collective will is a genuine Rites of Passage forged from among us and fit for these times going forward, bringing us back to the Context in which people of African descent are depicted and the serious need to intelligently influence and predetermine most if not all of it! The Rites of Passage took place at the most pivotal juncture in a person's life, the age of Puberty! The commencement of pubescence unalterably changes a person on every level and for a child to experience this in an uncontrolled environment almost always results in a torrent of confusion and poor decision-making lasting well into their adult years and for some into their graves.

Apparently, our ancient forefathers and fore mothers made much adeu about this particular event in an individual's life to ensure that all of what such a transition entailed and implied was thoroughly understood, appreciated, and honored. Now-a-days most children stumble or happen upon the menstrual cycle, nocturnal emission, sex, and sexual expression and the parents or guardians are usually the last to find out, and when they do become privy, very little attention is given to the important issues involving puberty, if any at all.

I propose an open dialogue about sex, sexuality, identity, and life-purpose between parents, teachers, children and students in the context of education and empowerment, and a commitment as conscious consumers to only spend and invest with people and institutions dedicated to reinforcing the principles of Sound Living and to deny patronage to those whose modus operandi is anathema to the uplift of all people and the reversal of our plight.

What say you?

theintelligentbrother@gmail.com

http://theintelligentbrother.blogspot.com/2011/02/almost-home-by-brian-holiday-el.html

Sincerely Yours, Brian Holiday-El

Almost Home by Brian Holiday-El

Let's Go!

Thinking about the history of our experiences as a Race of people brings to mind every color in the emotional rainbow. I am overwhelmed with holy awe and profound pride when recounting the industrial inventiveness of my ancient forefathers and fore mothers, who charted the celestial and her eternal motions and cycles of planets, suns, moons, stars, and galaxies perfectly with the use of neither telescopes nor space stations; organized their cultures and civilizations and erected their architecture and systematized their words, ways, and actions so that they mirrored the orderly nature of the heavens above. Gripped by acute anger and sore dismay, battling with the righteousness of forgiveness, I am, when I recall the ominous advent of transatlantic slavery and the ineffable horror borne by my bygone kindred under the Roman yoke of Euro-centric colonization and genocidal exploits on the continents of Africa, Asia, and the Americas. Gloom and sorrow envelop my heart when I contemplate the murders, rapes, beatings, lynchings, hangings, the psychological and emotional torture of slave-making and involuntary bondage with its legacy of broken families, stunted growth, crippled trust, mental displacement, and debilitating fear. The advancements of the Civil Rights Movement built up a hope that was all but shattered upon the rocks of bigotry, institutional racism, and economic ostracism. At first glance, it would appear that we’ve been running on a social treadmill for the last half century since, economically and socially speaking, we've actually lost more ground that we've gained. As unimaginably taxing and inconceivably trying as it has been to hold on to the shreds of dignity, self respect and esteem of our waning humanity, we must grasp tighter to the divinity in our hearts and the memory in our blood. As understandable as it would be now to throw all morality to the wind and toss the spirit of compassion and giving to the birds thereby muting the voice of conscience and suppressing our inherent instinct to reason and love, be ye always encouraged in knowing this: The highest quality of strength, wisdom and beauty is only attained when suffering is overcome by faith and faith is crowned with love. No people have ever known the 'pinnacle of wisdom' like our ancient ancestors and now, my beloved brothers and sisters, no Race knows the bottomless pit of pain like us, the descendants of that great people. We have weathered every storm our foes have conjured, sustained every wound their blows have inflicted and died every death that life allows, but there is one last, long, toilsome lap; one more dark, winding, road to traverse; one more wide river to cross. At times we may travel and fight alone, but we will rise and triumph together as one in a victory requiring not only everything that we are, but also, everything that we never thought was possible, inspiring within me a strange mixture of fearlessness and joy. We are almost home!

The Generational Divide: Our 'Sinful & Fallen State' Whose Responsibility Is It?

Let's Go!

On a personal level, my father failed me as his father failed him. My maternal grand father(pbuh) failed me just as his father failed him. They failed because they refused to bond the best of their potential with the best of my potential. Earlier today I asked my mother what she could tell me about her paternal grand father and her reply was, “nothing at all!” Though I can only speak from my perspective, this polemic isn't just about me; this is about Humanity as a whole, and from my studies, travels, observations, and intimate experiences with every class, ethnic, and cultural segmentation, there is one constant ethos, one perpetual theme:there is a gaping chasm, a fractured fault-line, that exists and persists between the older generation and the younger generation; be they Afro-Asiatic, South American, Native American, Pacific Islander, African etc. we are all suffering from the same generational plight. To be fair, I have met older men and women who have gone the extra mile in instilling within me the vital principles and precepts of self awareness, familial, fraternal, and communal fealty and love and self-determination. These beautiful and honorable men and women have become like family to me, filling, if but only partially, the burdensome paternal void I once labored to bear. As remarkable and commendable as these people are, the fact of the matter is, people like them and character like theirs are few, far, and in between. As a result of this compassionate minority having become the accepted and expected norm, family and society in general has split at the seams, resulting in the widening of the present generational gap. Who is to blame? Whose fault is it? Better still, who's responsible? Be still and listen! Of all the trees on this beautiful but fading Earth from the smallest and frailest to the tallest, biggest, and broadest...all of them began as a seed that, in order to grow apace, needed perennial nourishment from Father Sky/Grandfather Sun and Mother Earth/Grandmother Moon. They are unquestionably the eldest! Once the Trees have reached full maturity after centuries of blossoming, withering, and blossoming again, yielding its finest fruits, and begins to deteriorate back to the soil about its root, does the Sun, Moon, Sky, and Earth cease supporting their complete transition back to its essence? NO! They continue to support life, nourish life, feed life like and as if there is no such thing as dying, no such thing as an ending to the carrying out of an eternal duty, and no such concept as a final contribution. Some trees have lived to see the rise and fall of many empires because of the unwavering carrying out of the universal principle of perpetual support. These Trees are the Families of Man! “I'm done being a mother or a father to my children: I'm no longer anyone's child:my child doesn't need a Father!” There's no such thing and this foolishness is unthinkable and a sure recipe to the youth's undoing! The same participants in the civil rights movement who championed the cause of human rights, often cast an indignant eye toward the younger generation and say, “you all just don't know how good you have it, you all have no clue, you all have it so easy, you all are tarnishing our legacy, wasting our accomplishments.” Well now, what would the enslaved African, back bent, laboring in the scorching sun, still cognizant of his regal heritage, growing weary from but fighting to stave off the yoke of the slave-master trying to tear his ancestral knowledge from his soul at the point of the bamboo, salt wrapped whip...what would he say to the arrogant, pompous heirs of civil liberties disguised as rights begrudgingly bestowed upon the recently freed slave? The same civic milestones of the 1960's held out to the younger generation today as evidence of having 'arrived' are the same vestiges of which Dr. King was referring to when he lamented, “I fear I may have integrated my people into a burning house.” Not only does a person make mistakes, whole peoples make mistakes, especially those up from slavery and alien oppression. Oh! The young still need the old...need the old to come down from that dinner table in the heavens, stop feasting on that pie in the sky, and start keeping it real with the youth, not only about what's right, but about how wrong they were and how far left they went before they regained their sensibilities thanks to someone older or younger than they! Oh! These are the last days and times alright! The last days we're going to pretend children don't need a mother AND a father! The last days we're going to perpetrate as if we're working as hard and as intelligently and as together as we could be to bridge this familial chasm and generational divide that keeps our families hovering on the brink of total insolvency. The last time we're going to look somewhere else for the authority of self-determination other than right in our own chest and within our own souls and within our own minds. Whose to blame? The Oppressor! Whose fault is it? The elders! Whose responsibility is it? The responsibility is OURS! If you're a teacher then TEACH! Stop sitting behind the desk pushing rote, outdated, irrelevant lesson plans that have no bearing on the child's immediate reality...get creative and quit milking the clock for a pay check while doing a double disservice; dulling the youth's most supple and ideal years for learning and squandering the tax payers dollars! If you're a doctor or physician or nurse, HEAL, and quit allowing the bureaucratic red tape to prevent you from upholding the Hippocratic oath! If you're a statesman or elected official, SERVE! Bravely, do the bidding of We The People's collective will and stop filibustering, philandering, and political posturing...push the necessary agendas to re institute sound faith in the political process by enforcing the Constitution! If you're a mother then NURTURE, and stop allowing television, the internet, and people off the streets to rear your children...get out of the mirror and get in front of the real mirror...your children! If you're a father, then GUIDE and SUPPORT your progeny, be it phone calls, letters, quality time, money, supplies, advice or what have you. Single parents, get out of the way of the other half, release the grudges of divorce and separation and wake up to the reality that no one will love the child like the flesh from whence he or she came. Obama being in office has not stopped the crime rate from escalating, unemployment from sprawling, profiling from terrorizing, or you from getting out of your own way to make a difference in this crumbling world most of us struggle to eke out a living in! The, “I got mine, now you get yours” mentality is debilitating at best. WE NEED EACH OTHER!!!! The old needs the young and the young needs the old, but it's incumbent upon those that know better and are capable of doing better to make the first move. Otherwise, the worst is yet to come! Most of the older generation got their 'rights', their pensions, their tenure, and comfy positions within this faltering establishment and fell back, as if the coast was clear. But lo! Just over the horizon came this teetering economy that unmistakably showed people the world over just how fragile that nest egg really was without investing in the hearts and minds of the youth! If the older generation is going to stand on our shoulders their going to have to lighten the load by giving back a whole lot more. I'm just saying.....

If you can help yourself, don't just read this...join this great debate, respond, re-post, and pass this on...add on!

PS...

Why did the emancipation proclamation only out law 'involuntary servitude' and not voluntary servitude as well?

Let's make this a viral debate!

B. Holi

1/20/2011

4:11 pm

What About The Children? By Brian Holiday-El

Let's Go!

The following is inspired by Marvin Gaye's, "What About The Children?"

As a whole, my beloved brothers and sisters, we are squandering our greatest and most sacred investment! As valuable and uncertain as Time is, it is not Humanity's most priceless possession. Though vital and necessary it may be, Riches aught never be Man's most cherished treasure. Your house will be bought and sold a hundred times or raised to the ground the moment you leave this world. Gold and precious metals have filled the tombs of deceased nobility only to be emptied the very moment the sky bats an eye. Time and riches could not be enjoyed without the soundness of good health, but even well-being is dependent on somewhat else, and all of these perish in the grave. In vain, men and women hoard material and watch it like predators do their prey, so obsessed with accumulation that their lives are over before the trappings have been made truly useful to anyone, including themselves. The ever crucial resource of attention is splurged on matters and concerns that return nothing but an even greater demand for more and more of it. And lo! They, who are destined to be be here long after you, them, the very reflections of all that you are made of, those, the truest representations of your own net worth, are placed, by far and large, toward the very least of considerations. People soon forget most, if not all, of what you do for yourself, but honor and exalt, for many life times, what you do for others. When all that you have amassed has been reclaimed by the source from which it sprung...once all that you did, by time, has been undone, the Children are the Earth's final judges as to whether you as a legacy are remembered or forgotten, esteemed or cursed, respected and loved, or scorned and hated. Guide them because they need it and afford them the good that was or was not extended to you. When they stray, know that they are taking the long way home, and Creative Fate, one way or another, will show them the straight way. They have but One mother and One father; to the deepest measure, include them BOTH! They have but one first impression, make yours the most noble. If you have many, love them equally. If you have few, love them wholly. If you have one, love one totally. If you have none then love those that are closest. But love them all unconditionally. And before you have well considered all of your ends, means, and aims, answer thoroughly the question, “What about the children?”

In The Memory Of King by Brian Holiday-El

Let's Go!

The following is inspired by a posted picture of and a question posed by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. put forth by Heru G. Duenas of Positive Black Stories. 
http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/pages/Positive-Black-Stories-By-Heru-G-Duenas/145708032139774

The question is, "Life's most urgent question.......what are you doing for others?"

Peace and Love Brothers and Sisters! You know, in some circles King's teachings and civic efforts catch a

bad rap...some of our most prominent thinkers, teachers, scholars etc. see Affirmative Action as a step

backwards, citing the precipitous decline in African American business and property ownership following the

advent of integration as evidence of a misdirected mass of people upon the path to empowerment through

polity. The question was once posed to me by one of my first REAL teachers during my Junior year in high-

school back in the late 90's, “what's more debilitating, Economic discrimination or Social discrimination?”

What a cognitive quagmire! Here we are nearly a half-century removed from the onset of the Civil Rights

Movement and the Afro-Asiatic peoples inhabiting the Americas are still an underclass whether viewed

through the lens of Economy or Polity. The mitigates, detractors, and opponents of King's social thesis extol

'Black Wall Street' as the model for self-determination for those up from slavery, as opposed to an

acclamation of Jesus' gospel of love to all man and Gandhi’s non-violence and peaceful protest to the

struggle of the children of the Maafa. They say we traded the bank for the bus. The leveling of these retorts

are not wholly invalid or without merit and they do warrant critical consideration, but they can never negate

the resonance of King's visionary reach! His contemporary was Brother Malcolm, who began his ministry as

a staunch proponent of Separation, but later grew in thought and mind to extend his thesis for self-

determination to moderate inclusion of all peoples regardless of race, creed etc. Deserving of mention is

Cleaver with his disciplined and armed militancy by the arm of the Black Panthers. The inextricable

connectedness of our plight and the inevitable necessity of unity to unearth ourselves from the muck and mire

of social marginalization, national and international, economic insolvency and disenfranchisement from the

body-politic brought these leaders of their day together, yet shortly thereafter they all were taken out,

methodically, systematically, one by one. What world would we live in now had these kings among kings met

again? What would have been the synthesis of their converged thinking? Is it a fair deduction to conclude that

the 'powers that be' also pondered the trajectory of one such meeting of the minds? King was still a fairly

young man! He was growing leery of the gradualist on capitol hill during the days preceding his assassination.

A meeting of the minds, a consensus and subsequent handshake was clearly in the offing. King's words and

the impact of his life are nothing short of magnanimous, but it must be remembered that as impacting as he

was, he was still a work in progress that was cut down before his full maturation. So, what are we doing for

others??? I know what were not doing! We're not honoring the legacy and the struggle of our ancestors,

ancient and recent by focusing more on what unites us than what divides us, accentuating the positive more

than the negative, magnifying the similarities over the differences, reconciling the disparities more than

aggravating them. Positive Black Stories has the formula my brother! King would be proud!

What To Question

Let's Go!

Why would you think of it if you could not bring yourself to achieve it? How can you conceive of it, if you

cannot be accomplished in it? That which brought you to the complete thought of a thing hath already

endowed thee with the wherewithal to toil it into existence. Does the Sun question the Moon's capacity to

reflect? Will the feet hesitate to support the mass of the body? Does not the salt of the mouth assist the acid

in the stomach? Do your lungs require your fullest attention to breathe or your neck deny your head the right

to swivel? Man is capable of anything and incapable of nothing. Impossibilities are the phantoms of the

dreamless dastard. The pulse that proceeds from the heart of the coward is the faintest, but the bravery of

the resolute is impenetrable. Just as some birds migrate south at the onslaught of the sojourning chill, certain

in nothing save the providence of Nature and the mandate of instinct...just as the bat teases gravity in the

throes of its repose while remaining void of the fear of crashing upon its skull, so too do you, O Man, have at

your disposal the Will and the Way. The thing then to doubt is not whether or not you can, but rather,

whether or not you ought to. From hence forth, question less your capacities and capabilities and ponder

more so the merits of your objectives, “for what is a man to gain if he gathers the whole world and loses

himself in the process?” Not a dog on thing!

B.Holi

Aaaaaand ACTION!

Let's Go!

Aaaaaand ACTION!

If you are anything like me, there are still many things in life you are working towards achieving. You look at your situation and you are thankful for what you do have, yet you see room for improvement in yourself and in the world around you. Like a physician for the Soul, here's the right prescription. From now on, ACT IMMEDIATELY! By not delaying, hesitating, stalling, second-guessing and so on, you'll begin to develop a flow, that flow will turn into a wave, that wave will produce a stream of wind, and that wind stream will propel you faster and faster to the destiny of your purpose! When you hesitate you miss the opportunity to ride the waves of destiny. Therefore, make a habit of replacing excuses with action. By doing so, you'll generate a momentum, a rhythm, a beat, a vibration that sends a signal to the center of everything. The echeo of that signal will return, like tides to a coastline, carrying the trappings of the currents in the form of people, information, and situations bearing the seeds of the potential to change your life for the better. But just like any other type of journey you'll need to be on the right road, moving in the right direction, in order to see the right signs directing you to the right destination. Regardless of the situation you find yourself in, both turning around and continuing onward requires one thing first and foremost, being in gear! If you're in gear, press the gas and steer! When a good idea comes to you, ACT on it. When something positive and constructive comes to mind, DO it! By the time you're in stride with the habit of doing, you'll be so busy enjoying doing the things you've always wanted to do, you'll no longer have the time or the mind to not do anything. Without further adeu....

ACT ONE:TAKE ONE!!!!!!!!!!!

My Mother's Worth!

Let's Go!

My mother, my mother, my mother, NONE ELSE CAN COMPARE! There was a program on television the other day entitled Young Voices, I believe, and there was a poem performed by a tall young dark sister and a short young caucasian boy. The poem was a metaphor between a woman as the planet Earth, Mother Nature, and Humanity as a whole. It spoke of how the same way the Earth is 'treated' by man with his pollution, wars, destruction and violence, is the same way a woman is treated.

How quickly people forget just how much a mother is worth!!!!!

My mother is my heart! She is the closest thing to God in this world! She sacrificed EVERYTHING for the well being of her children and grandchildren, yet she's done it without the slightest concern for herself. Even when a person is 'all-grown-up,' off into the world, living and learning, that NEVER changes the fact that when that person was born, naked, frail, fragile, ignorant, defenseless, and helpless, Mommy took care of that ass! Had she not fed you, you wouldn't have eaten! Had she not cleaned and cuddled you, you wouldn't have lived! Some fools have the gumption to say, “I didn't ask to be born!” Such a sentiment curses one's Maker, and Justice will quicken.

Lately, you haven't been feeling appreciated, so let me remind you just how much your worth is remembered. I love you Ma!! You've never judged me, but you've always been there to guide me! You've been the most understanding all the while being the most misunderstood! I think you're perfect because your love is! You're beautiful within and without! People make buildings, YOU made a MAN! People save lives, you saved mine! People turn their backs, your arms never leave me! Friends become enemies, who you are has never changed! People lose hope, your faith in me only grows! If anyone has forgotten, count me amongst the few who will never, ever, ever forget the worth of a Mother!

I love you Ma!!!!!!!!!!!!

your FIRST, B!!!!!!!!

Excerpt from Prescient Education by Brian Holiday

Let's Go!

 "Once an individual's life-purpose becomes the compass with which he or she begins to navigate the seas of consciousness, life ceases to be a string of seemingly endless storms as the clouds of confusion and despair are driven away by the light of purpose and beacons of hope."

B.Holi

The Crossroads!

Let's Go!

The Crossroads

The only place where the faith, character, and resilience of a person meet with the

circumstances that encourages spiritual and psychological transformation is THE CROSSROADS!

How else do you really come to know and appreciate just how beautiful and wonderfully you're made

than by being tried and tested? Indeed, the path of least resistance most often affords individuals the

temporary comforts of going with the flow, but what happens when you're forced to choose between

what feels right and what is right? What happens when the opinions of others that you hold in such

high esteem fail to quell the insatiable thirst of the ego??? What do you do when doing just enough is

not enough??? What do you do when you can no longer hear the voice of the one you've relied on to

remind you of your worth??? Where do you go, when you've realize that the very thing you desire to

break free from follows you wherever you find yourself? When all that you value begins to seem worthless, for what should you strive for??? If you had no phone, who would write you a letter??? If you had no home, who would open up their doors???

Embrace the hardships that has and will inevitably befall every human being! When problems arise,

give thanks to whatever Higher Power you look to for the opportunity to improve, for this is where

hope dies and gives birth to faith, and where faith is transformed into LOVE! It is only at the

Crossroads that humanity truly finds, experiences and appreciates all that life has to offer! Don't go

looking for it, but when it comes, turn not away from it, because through it you are reborn and made

new!

SERENITY

Today, I felt the waves of wrath fly out of my chest and my head, but my mouth remained clean.. Flashes of anger, hurt, and scorn formed, yet flew from me. I searched for a response to the cold misunderstanding, yet none were fit to reply to a conditioned rage. All I was able to bring myself to say is...

Time Heals All Wounds.

B-Holi

Excerpt from The Intelligent Brotha' ; Transcending Race & Adversity

From a chapter entitled "Troubledale"

The first thing I noticed about Cassidy Elementary was that the students all but ran the school.  Of course, there were some teachers who didn’t play that, but for the most part there was a pervading sense of fear.  So many low income children packed in over-crowded classrooms only served to worsen the chances of a child getting a quality education in an already underresourced  public school system.  I went from seeing what was in my previous school relatively well-behaved children, who tended to be generally orderly in the hallways and all the more quiet and attentive during class in their neat blue and white uniforms, loafers and shoes  to…baggy jeans and play clothes worn during school hours, loud lunch rooms and hallways and generally disruptive classrooms.  Subjects like sex, and the personal opinions of students and faculty which would be spoken of discretely in my former school was commonly heard aloud during class and luch time in public schools.  Incidents of fighting and violence and student insubordination was much more rampant. The girls were ‘faster’.  I was flooded with every counter-productive element imaginable.  I learned later that my mother actually wanted me to continue attending parochial school in Philly, but my father decided against it.  I immediately noticed the lower academic  and behavioral standards and expectations for the students.  I remember thinking, “I learned all of this last year.”   Tests were easier because the instruction was less rigorous. More students per teacher meant less time a teacher could spend actually teaching.   Grading was usually on a curve, so the apparent indicators of academic achievements were inherently skewed.   Amidst the students, a greater concern was ploaced on outward appearance.  Status was based on clothes, machismo, promiscuity and a high level of academic performance was placed on the lowest scale of peer values.  It wasn’t cool to be smart, and it wasn’t until it was time for report cards to go home that a majority of the students showed any degree of genuine appreciation for the importance of education.  Then, the next week it was back to business as usual.  For the teachers, their report cards were the results of statewide testing.  During the days approaching the exam week, teachers, and faculty would promote one means or another for students to have some ‘extra’ time to review subjects expected to be in the state assessments, but once the results came back poor, insufficient resources and the students' behavioral problems and the like were held up as the reasons for the disparity in academic achievements in wealthy and generally White districts as compared to those largely inhabited by African Americans.  This cycle of underperformance reinforces itself until as a whole, people begin to simply expect less.  For  a majority of students in public schools, its survival of the fittest, the rat race.  Students don’t fall behind in middle and highschool.  Initially children fall behind as a prority at home.  The less time a parent spends going over homework with children at an early age, and not just giving them lipservice on how important an education is, the more disillusioned they become.  If poor academic performance in school is dismissed as a phase at an early age then the likelihood of that child growing increasingly estranged in the school setting as that child continues to fall behind.  Rewarding underachievement with the newest sneakers, or a video-game is not a detterent to underperformance.  But, parents do it all the time.  If instead of material items, parents set aside time to sit with the teachers and administrators and open dialogue about the child’s needs etc.  there wouldn’t be a such thing as a 50% dropout rate and an equally high incarceration and divorce rate.  Furthermore, school administrations become so preoccupied with behavior agendas that academic needs become less of a priority.  Nutrition and health concerns even more so become a passing issue, as ‘down-towns’ directives for diplomas become further tied to state exams, teachers and administrators fall all over themselves to teach to the test rather than teach to the curriculum.  It’s about pass or fail downtown when it should be about educating and insuring comprehension.  Years later I came to see the cycle from a full circle perspective as a guest teacher listeneing to a majority of instructors clamour on adnauseum in the teachers lounge and dining area about how problematic this or that child was or wasn’t.  I don’t recall one incident where a teacher wasn’t bemoaning his or her stressful classroom and didn’t meet with a chorus of vehement acceptance and agreement.  Not once did I hear constructive criticism of the teacher that suggested maybe she fine tuner her approach or spend a little more one on one time with the student.  For the most part the system’s shortfalls are passed back to the student, leaving the children to bear the brunt and burdens of a system supposedly designed for their benefit.

The Pivot

You will reach a point in life, a moment in time, when redundancy yields restlessness...the tedium of conformity strangles the will, the residue of an outdated paradigm stifles the imagination, the smallness of the voice of conscience grows louder, the environment becomes a solitary sign directing the soul toward the canal of destiny, every sound resonates in unison singing you in, your favorite foods fail to satisfy and quell your growing appetite, what is so important becomes insignificant, what is so urgent is rendered inconsequential, and what is so dire is rendered futile!  How fortunate you are to have come hence, how happy you will be to tredge onward, how damned are you to turn back...from the Pivot!