shawn from myrtle.

BEDSTUY, NY-2022.

PEACE. When I think of home a few things come to mind. No matter where I’m at in the world home is Bed-Stuy, New York - known as “The Heart Of Medina”,  the heart being Bed-Stuy and Medina being Brooklyn. When I think of home I think of convenience, I see a mirror reflection of truth and reality. I think of strength and security but also a place of vulnerability. Home is knowing everybody in your neighborhood. Home is ones foundation that teaches structure and maintenance. More importantly, home is needed. Living in public housing, Sumner Projects to be exact, we hear cars blasting the latest music, police sirens, speeding fire trucks, ambulance rushing to the nearest hospital, noisy neighbors and people of all ages just outside on the block from about noon to 3am. I was born in Brooklyn but also raised in Harlem and the Bronx, thanks to my Dad I can say New York is really my body. With me spending most of my time in Brooklyn, because of school and my mother, I would say it changed a lot from the 90s to now.  Most of the people I know either moved, died, or are in jail now. I’ve seen some of my childhood favorite restaurants close, even the neighborhood park got a makeover. Gentrification has brought healthier restaurants to my neighborhood but, it’s more Black owned businesses. Can you imagine we have balconies across the street from the projects? Brooklyn is definitely the new Manhattan, it’s just more money here now - more  opportunities to grow. 

Some pivotal moments that shaped who I am today, is not having my father in the house due to his infidelity; that played a role in my self-sufficiency. Till this day my father has been in my life, just not always under the same roof. It’s the physical presence and eye to eye conversations that I needed during traumatic times - one  of those stemming from peer pressure. Hanging in the streets with the wrong crowd led me to be slashed in the face at a very young age. I was only 16 years old…stressed the fuck out. I dealt with anxiety, trust issues, and my anger spiraled a little during that time for different reasons as well. I mentally haven’t been the same since. All in all, I would say I like who I’ve become. On my moms immediate side of the family, we were raised Christian, both my older brother and I. My family very much believes in prayer. Learning more about religion, I found out each religion has their own version/figure of God. As I aged and started to navigate my own peace of mind, The Nation Of Gods And Earths (The 5 Percenters) came to me.

I want to start off by saying the 5 Percenters are not Muslim and not a religion. The knowledge did expand from Clarence 13X, who was once a part of the Nation Of Islam but wanted to go teach his understanding to the kids on the streets that wasn’t at the Mosque. Learning about the NGE (Nation Of Gods And Earths) saved my life. Word is bond thats how I knew it was for me. I had never been so dedicated to learning who the real God was in my life. I learned I was God the whole time, in the physical and mental. I got “Knowledge Of Self.” As a 5 Percenter, your job is to teach the truth. We call ourselves the True And Living. You have choices in life who you want to be and how you want to live your life. It’s a percentage of 100 in whole; 85% easily misled. You could be the 10%, that percent controls the 85% by knowing the truth, yet leaving 85% dependent. Then it’s the 5%, we only deal with what’s right and exact. We’re going to teach the babies and create independence. When asked about Supreme Mathematics for the people that dont know what that is, it’s made up of a few things. (1) Knowledge (2) Wisdom (3) Understanding (4) Culture/Freedom (5) Power (6) Equality (7) God (8) Build or Destroy (9) Born (10) Knowledge Cipher or Cipher. My favorite mathematics has to be (7) God. God is about knowing your purpose, knowing what it means to be supreme, teaching and living truth. It’s your physical, Arm, Leg, Leg, Arm, Head, ALLAH. Someone I’ve known all my life, Ms. Dot (who was my babysitter at one point), taught me loyalty. Still till this day she sends me birthday cards, I’m probably the only child that she watched that still keeps in contact with her. She’s a real one, definitely loyal..