To say that I am excited to see Black Panther would be an understatement. I love this character and he ranks in my top 10 comic characters.
When the character posters began to make the rounds online I was taken by the tagline on T'Challa's poster says, "His Father's Legacy". The mantle of Black Panther can be traced back through a single family lineage. Marvel even released an offical family tree this week.
I could talk for days about Black Panther and what he meant to me growing up as a little nerd that is not the focus of this post. I want to talk about legacy.
Honor the Legacy
Last night my wife and i were talking about our kids self-esteem. It seems an important part of the discussion I hear other parents discuss. I told her that my parents did think about my self-esteem that much. If anything I felt that my Mom wanted to make sure that I never thought too highly of myself. This was a good thing. She knew what I didn't think about until I was older. I was a pretty arrogant kid. Some of it was because of the mentality of youth. The other part was because of my family lineage.
This is going to sound way more arrogant than I intend it. I am a Matthews. Not only that I am the combination of Matthews and Butler families. Now that might not mean anything to you but my family has produced some pretty prestigious firsts in our area. There are streets named for the families in the area. Specifically I grew up on Matthewstown Rd where the neighborhood was once the sole ownership of my Great Great Grandfather Papa Nick.
Growing up I heard about my family's history and how we as kids were expected to live up to it. Many of my older cousins went on to careers in public service, law, engineering and entertainment. There was an idea that there wasn't anything that we couldn't do if we pushed towards it. Even for those of us who didn't push towards some crazy goal we knew there was something diffrent about us. Something powerful that we needed to honor. Something that shouldn't be forgotten.
What is Your Story?
So what is it about knowing your history that creates confidence. Knowing your connection to the things around you mean you don't have to worry about your place. Knowing who you are means you have something to push back against requests that are out of character. Knowing your family history can often highlight patterns you need to look out for.
I am not saying that everyone needs to become or hire a geneologist. Here is what you need to do.
- Know your IDENTITY
- Know your HISTORY
- Establish your STANDARDS
As far as the February declartion I missed the weekend posts. I will post them as they are available.
Go Out There and Do Something Amazing!
Go Go GO!
Image Credit: Marvel Studios