"Open your eyes, and look within
Are you satisfied, with the life you're living
we know where we're going,
we know where we're from,
We're leaving Babylon, we're going to our Father's land"
-- Exodus, Bob Marley
I
know I know, some of ya’ll wanna fuss me
out because I waited sooooo freaking long to put up the follow up blog. I should be a shamed of myself for
making ya’ll wait. Nevertheless, I want
to thank you all for being fans and tapping me on my shoulder like, “uh, girl,
I know you’re in school, but you better get on your blog shit, pronto!” lol
When
we last left off, my ass was being converted to being a dread
head….Rastafari!
I
can't explain what being a Rasta really is, I'm not a Rastafarian, but let me
tell you, after my stay in Jacksonville I was ready to let my head dread, roll
a spliff and help with the movement of Jah’s people!
Many
of you who read my last blog was on edge as to what happened the night I was at
my friend Tina’s house. Well, we rolled
up a corn roll and they brought me into their world.
Picture
it, dim lights, incense burning, and Natural Mystic playing in the
background….kinda seductive if you think about it….or was this the ceremony of
induction? Either way, my naïve butt was
there, on drugs, in a city I did not know anyone…obviously God, Jah, Jehovah, or
whoever was watching over me because if I would have ended up on Nancy Grace,
it would have been no one’s fault but my own.
But hey, that is why I have so many stories to tell…I’m
adventurous.
To the Rasta's, The Emperor of Ethiopia, Haile
Selassie I is/was thought to be the returned Messiah. Now dig this, the
folks in Ethiopia did not claim this!! No, the people of Jamaica thought this,
and here is the reason why. Apparently, Haile Selassie's lineage claims
that on his pappy's side, his great grandmother was direct a decedent of Queen
Sheba and King Solomon. In the bible, Psalms 68:31 it states
"...Ethiopia shall soon stretch out her hands unto
God."
White people, no disrespect, but you do know they were black, I mean this was in AFRICA!
Certainly not this BS right here ya'll tried to sell us, but Elizabeth Taylor is still a diva!
Now
wait, it gets deeper...so when Haile Selassie became Emperor and news traveled
to Jamaica that a descendant of King Solomon was now Emperor of Ethiopia, to
the Jamaicans, this was as the bible predicted, he was the messiah
reincarnate. Holy blunt smoke batman!
Okay,
so Haile Selassie's first name is Tafari, and "Ras" means
"head" so put it together you have Ras
Tafari...Rastafari...Rastafarian. Get it? Got it?
Good!
Now,
not all Rastafarians believe that Haile Selassie is the messiah returned, but
they do believe of his lineage and therefore acknowledge him as a
prophet. But wait a minute, check this, Emperor Haile Selassie isn't a
Rasta...no, he is a Christian! Jesus, Mary, KC & Jo Jo!!! This is
deep!
Nevertheless, he respected the beliefs of the Rasta's because he of course felt everything they believed was in fact true: he was a descendant of David, he had lineage to Queen Sheeba, he was the new ruler of Ethiopia. Now, of course things in history can get muddled, but he felt the plight of the Jamaican people, understood their respect for spirituality and he certainly felt that Bob Marley was in fact one of God's messengers, Bob Marley was the truth to him. lol, but seriously, I was taught that
Rastafarian is not a religion; it is a belief and practice of
principles.
As
for Bob Marley, he is believed to be a prophet (to the rasta’s—hell and me too)
come to tell us of our future through song.
Listen to Bob’s lyrics, he is very conscious, and his music is
timeless. Nevertheless, he met Haile
Selassie and he gave Bob Marley his ring, and this is very symbolic to the Rastafarian
believers.
See that ring on his finger ^ that is the ring I'm talking about.
Wow, I feel like smoking a spliff for that breakdown
there.
Now remember, this is all stuff I was taught nearly 10 years ago. I'm not sure what is accurate or not...don't go around saying "yeah, I read Lisa's blog and she said Bob Marley is the Messaiah and he parted the Red Sea!" No, Bob Marley did not part the Red Sea, it was Charlton Heston! (jokes)
So,
that was my first night, of opening my mind to the world of Rastafarian. Let me tell ya, I was sold! The remainder of my stay, we would go to
different Rasta events, and other friends of Tina and her husband…true Rasta’s
who came from Jamaica and was breaking it all down. They mixed in their beliefs with conspiracy
theories about the United States, the government…. man, this was deeper than
finding out Santa didn’t exist and there would never be another Jodeci album.
With
all of this new knowledge, I was so excited to share it with my friends and
family back home…or so I thought, until I realized, I needed to change my
occupation and do something for the people, I mean that is what being a
Rastafarian was about right, movement of the people! Therefore, I put in my 60-day notice for my
job, and started looking at non-profit jobs where I could help those who needed
my humbled service.
Well to my surprise,
my job said “well Lisa, since your sales numbers in Seattle and Jacksonville
are low, just forget the 60 day notice and don’t come back to duty next week.” What?
Sales low in Seattle? It was
winter and I told you. Sales low in
Jacksonville, I’ve been here for 3 weeks.
So, was this their way of firing me?
See, CONspiracy had already started!
The MAN was trying to take me under when all I want to do was serve the
people. I did not have a back up job, (I
was planning to find one within my 60 days), so guess what, they sent my ass
back to Seattle without commission and my last paycheck. I was HEATED!!!! Rastafarian went out the door and good ole
neck rolling, finger poppin “Oh hell to the naw” Lisa snapped right back! I called unemployment, filed and told them
they let me go without my commission check!
So, I got unemployment, and they sent my commission check.
Yet,
I was back in Seattle, no work, no place to live (gave my apartment up when I
was in Memphis)…. on the unemployment line…. movement of Jah’s people huh?
Don’t get me wrong, I was still on my
Rastafarian tip, but it slowed down like 89%.
To this day, I still believe that God is in us, that we must learn to
live a disciplined life, eat food of the earth and believe in helping our own
communities. #trayvonmartin
Up
next: Tales from the Hood
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