The AC Phoenix: More than a Newspaper, a Community Institution -- Issue No. 2014, June 2014

Page 13 June 2014 The AC Phoenix
Open Your Gifts
By John Raye
same kind of gifts, the same as no one has the same
set of fingerprints.
However, many mis-directed and mis-guided
people simply drift through life. And it’s easy to
drift when you don’t know how to open your gifts.
Even worse is to be unaware of your gifts.
But the late S.B. Fuller, the godfather of door-todoor
selling, said it best: “every man is born with a
spark of divinity, but it’s up to him to fan that spark!”
And Fuller certainly did fan his spark! Though
armed with only a 3rd grade education, he became
the first African-American male to become a selfmade
millionaire.
John Raye
No one is born with an empty, open, closed or
locked up mind. A baby begins life, it is said, with
only two fears—the fear of loud noise, and the fear
of falling down.
Everything else is instilled, picked up or acquired
from others.
So for the most part, we are products of our environment.
We become, more or less, like the people
we spend most of our time with-- association brings
on assimilation.
It’s hard, perhaps, impossible to be, “like Mike”, if you
have never seen, heard, read or met Mike!
As a child, I grew up watching western movies and
one day found myself wearing a pair of brand new
cowboy boots.
Now cowboy boots are not made for people with
big feet, especially big wide feet, and I was beautifully
endowed with both.
So, here I am, tip-toeing around like I’m walking
on cotton, because the narrow cowboy boots put
blisters and bunions on my toes. But I desperately
wanted to be a cowboy, much like Roy Rogers, Gene
Autry, Lash LaRue, Bob Steele, Wild Bill Elliott, etc.
Then too, I was a short little fellow and the cowboy
boots made me look and feel taller.
Reality, however, can quickly clean and clear up a
misguided imagination. Enough bunions, blisters
and corns on my toes, soon dashed the cowboy
fever from my mind. It’s hard to look cute when
your feet are talking back to you!
So, it wasn’t long before I went back to wearing a
regular size 12 ww pair of shoes. I may not have
looked better, but my feet sure did feel better!
My mother used to preach that an idle mind “was
the devil’s workshop.” This means we must not
allow our minds to remain open, polluted and unresponsive
with stuff and mess because an empty
mind seeks pleasure rather than responsibility. So
be aware of this tell-tell fact: we move, act, live and
behave in response to the images, ideas, thoughts
and beliefs instilled in our minds.
Also, it’s a very good thing to know that our minds
have to be nourished, stimulated, cultivated and
developed if we are to reach our full potential. All
of us are blessed, exclusively, with special talents
and gifts. And no one has, or ever will have, the
Nothing endures
but change.
Through patient self-analysis, Fuller discovered
his gifts and with a steady resolve, made them a
productive force in his life and also in the lives of
thousands of others around the USA.
But what about you? What are you doing with
your gifts?
Here’s a quick reality check: if you don’t honor,
employ or open your gifts, eventually, they will
dry-rot or be taken away from you! Much like social
workers who remove children found living in abusive
situations.
There is nothing so pathetic as to see an emptyheaded
man or woman drifting aimlessly through
life completely oblivious about their gifts, or hovering
far below their god-given potential. Wasted
potential, in the end, gives birth to a wasted life!
Still, it’s never too late to realize your gifts; be it one
or many-- all are made to be open. However, be
mindful of this reality: time and chance happens to
us all---when time is up, chance is also up!
In Theodore MacManus now famous 1915 Cadillac
ad, “The Penalty of Leadership”, we were introduced
to another reality:
“That which is good or great makes itself
known—no matter how loud
the clamor of denial. That which deserves
to live—lives!”
You may have heard the expression that “your gifts
will make room for you! I believe this to be true…
but only when such gifts are opened and deployed.
Gifts that remain unopened have no use…no value!
And any useless thing is soon discarded or tucked
away to be--out of sight or out of mind! You don’t
know your gifts? Well, ponder and reflect again
on this great truth: “that which is good or great—
makes itself known!”
Go open your gifts…and make yourself known!
--John Raye, a life-health- business coach, is an 8
year cancer champion. He lives in Kernersville, NC
(rayeandrosie@aol.com) (336) 782-8383
Remembering
Maya Angelou
A. Barry Rand, AARP CEO
A. Barry Rand, AARP CEO
When I learned of Maya Angelou’s passing
this morning, I remembered something
she once wrote in Letter to My Daughter
-”Try to be a rainbow in someone else’s
cloud.”
Maya Angelou spent her entire life being a
rainbow in someone else’s cloud. Through
her 31 books, her poetry, her personal
appearances and her other writings, she
spread her legendary wisdom throughout
the world, inspiring everyone who had the
good fortune to come into contact with
her personality and her work.
A former Poet Laureate of the United
States, she was one of the great voices of
contemporary literature and a remarkable
Renaissance woman. An educator, historian,
best-selling author, actress, playwright,
civil-rights activist, producer and director,
12 of her books became best-sellers. She
was nominated for three Grammy Awards,
and she received more than 50 honorary
degrees from colleges and universities
world- wide. She achieved ultimate recognition
in 2010 when President Obama
bestowed on her the Presidential Medal
of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian
honor.
Maya Angelou was a long-time friend
of AARP and of people 50+. She entertained
and enlightened audiences at our
National Event & Expo for many years as
our members listened in on her intimate
conversations with luminaries such as
Quincy Jones, Norman Lear, Whoopi Goldberg
and others. “At 50,” she told us, “you
become the person you always wanted
to be.”
This too, shall pass
In 2010, I had the distinct honor and pleasure
of presenting Maya Angelou with
the AARP Andrus Award, our association’s
highest honor. Then 82, her body was frail,
but her mind was sharp and her spirit was
strong. She was certainly a rainbow in all
of our clouds that evening.
Then, when AARP Foundation President,
JoAnn Jenkins, asked her to lend her
voice to an AARP Foundation video, she
didn’t hesitate-masterfully and eloquently
speaking for and to the nation’s most vulnerable
and often forgotten older Americans.
Maya Angelou once remarked, “When I
try to describe myself to God I say, “Lord,
remember me? Black? Female? Six-foot
tall? The writer? And I almost always get
God’s attention.”
On this day, Maya Angelou has God’s full
attention. And though we mourn her passing,
we will forever know that she remains
a rainbow in all of our clouds.