The Land

“A few years ago I was working the graveyard shift at a hotel in Orlando. It was ‘that’ hotel, the cheapest one in the area. The place where people go for an hour to do the things they need to do. And not only was I working there, but I was living there too. Because my wife was pregnant with our second child, and it was the only place we could afford. Late one night I’m sitting in the lobby with the owner’s son. It was just the two of us. He was from New York. He graduated from college and worked at a hedge fund. But I was still holding my own with him. I was able to challenge some of his beliefs. Because even though I’m working at a cheap hotel, I still know a lot of things. Then at one point he looks me dead in the eye, and says: ‘You know what? You’re probably right. You deserve more. But why would I ever give it to you, when I can get you for this?’ And that broke me. Because he knew. He knew what it all comes down to in the end. He knew he was going to drive away in his Tesla. And I was going to leave my desk, and go back to my room, in the hotel that he owned, which I couldn’t even afford with the money he paid me. He knew my wife was sick. And my child was about to be born. And that I had no other options. And it’s just so hard, man. It’s so hard to live in a world that wants you to be weak. That wants you to be an angry black man. Especially when you work your ass off every day. And you love people. And you tell your kids to be a good person. But I will say this, man. I’ve never buckled. A few weeks ago I lost my job. I just lost my home. It was just a room in some guy’s house, but it was where we lived. And we lost it. But I’m not going to fall down now. Because I’ve got to keep fighting for my family. Nothing else in this world matters man. They are god and my world. I’ve got a wife who treats me like a hero when we’re sleeping on the floor. And I’ve got the sweetest, most innocent kids man. They are just so sweet. And it’s so hard. Because they don’t deserve any of this. So I’ve got to keep fighting. I don’t need money or cars but they don’t deserve any of this. So whatever it takes. Oh shit, man. I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry. But it’s just not right.”

“I was just a neighborhood kid. There was no running water in our house. Or electricity. So in the evenings, when I came home from school, I’d sit out near the road. Across the street there was a hotel where foreigners stayed.  I’d watch them play Frisbee. I’d watch them buy African souvenirs from the street vendors. Occasionally one of them would come speak to me. I was an inquisitive child. I liked to ask questions. So I think they found me entertaining. One evening an American girl came up to me and started asking me questions. Just small talk: ‘What’s your name?’, and things like that.  But then she asked my birthday, and I told her: ‘November 19th.’  ‘No way.’ she replied. ‘That’s my birthday too!’ And after that we became friends. Her name was Talia. She’d come visit me every evening, and bring me chocolate chip cookies.  She’d let me play her Game Boy.  She’d ask about my family.  She’d ask about school.  I was the best student in my third grade class, so I’d show her my report cards, and she’d get so excited.  She was the first person to take me to the beach.  I’d never even seen the ocean before.  We had so much fun together. But one evening she told me that she was going back to America. And I began to cry. She bought us matching necklaces from a street vendor, took one final picture, and promised that she’d write me letters. It was a promise that she kept. The first letter arrived a few weeks after she left. And there were many letters after that. She told her parents all about me. They invited me to America to stay with them for a month. They took me to baseball games, and amusement parks, and shopping trips. It was the best time of my life.  When I returned to Ghana, they paid for all my school fees. They bought my books and clothes. They paid for me to get a degree in engineering. Now I have my own company. The Cassis family turned my life around. I was just some random kid they didn’t know, and they gave me a chance for my dreams to come true. I went back to visit them last year. But this time I didn’t need them to pay my way. I was giving a speech at MIT, because I’d been selected as one of their top innovators under the age of 35.” #quarantinestories

Maybe Early Access sometime soon? :)

“I used to be a corporate attorney for Coca-Cola.  I worked eighty hours a week.  Then one day I asked my boss for a single Friday off and he said ‘no.’  So I left my dog with my brother and flew to Europe.  That was ten years ago.  It’s been super fucking chill.” (Barcelona, Spain)

Just listen to her and pay attention. Communicate.

🤷🏼‍♀️

It will be a great experience

David D’Amato died in 2017, but there’s still Jane O’Brien media is still making new videos..