Mamba Mentality

 

  Kobe Bean Bryant (1978-2020) was and will always be my favorite athlete. I may have been too young to remember when Bryant played as jersey number 8 and won 3 rings (2000-2002) with Shaq. By the time I was of age (early to mid-teens) Bryant wore number 24, played alongside Pau Gasol, and won rings 4 and 5. For twenty seasons Bryant put the Los Angeles Lakers on his back. Throughout those twenty seasons Bryant gave himself a nickname: The Black Mamba. A member of an opposing team would smack talk him and he would unleash the mamba. The shot clock would be winding down and he would unleash the mamba. Myself and others knew this as "Mamba Mentality."    

  Mamba mentality is more than shooting a ball into a net. No matter what a person does for a living as long as he or she does their job with precision and focus is all that is needed. A professor or a student. A chef or a baker. A barber or a hairstylist. A plumber or a mechanic. A janitor or a custodian. You can be anything or anyone and adapt the mamba mentality to your life.     

  Growing up in Special Education I was told that I would need all the education I could get. I wasn't athletic or an entrepreneur. So, my only place of refuge was the classroom. Through participation, exams, homework assignments, and projects my mission each time was to be spotless. History was my favorite subject, but I had 80's and 90's in more than one subject. The administration and staff of The Bronxwood Preparatory Academy High School were loving, caring, and down to earth. For four years of attending BPA (2009-2013) my accomplishments included: Dean's List (1x), Honor Roll (23x), Chancellor's Honor Roll (Attendance), and The Blanche Schwartz Special Award for Special Children. June 26, 2013, was the day I received my High School Diploma. To date I have not step foot on the third floor of The Albert Tuitt, Sr. Educational Campus. Some roads are hard. Some roads are easy. As long as you are consistent you can achieve anything.   

  Merriam-Webster's definition of disciple is not of my liking. I have a solution for this problem. The 10-5-4 challenge is the best definition of discipline. Reading 10 Bible scriptures. Reading 5 chapters of a book. Writing or typing 4 pages all before the clock hits 12am will change your perception of yourself. The 10-5-4 challenge is not for those that feel as though they are better than others. Self-discipline is the goal. If you do this challenge all at once or by the hour is up to you. It's not about how the challenge is completed, but the fact that it's completed.     

  Storms rage in all of our lives. Your status doesn't matter. We are all human. We all have fears. We all have doubts. We all cry while we lay in bed. Perserverance gives us the strength to climb up our Mount Everests' and walk through our Grand Canyons'. These storms don't last forever. Lightning and thunder stop. The sky clears up. Whoever and whatever you use to be is no more. You are than born again. Your past is behind you. Your future is in front of you.     

  Shaped and molded unto perfection we stand on our gifts and potential. Money or notoriety is not what we are to live for. God's calling on our lives should be our only ambition. Treating each other with love and kindness is to be our only reputation. Whether it's perseverance. Whether it's discipline. Whether it's consistency. Whatever we set our minds on we will leave our stamp on this world.