As I think of the beauty of each year that passes by I wonder if we, as a society of wishful beings, really take our so-called vaulted resolutions seriously. Some “colored” folk don’t because they just go through the motions, if you know what I mean.

  Some of these “hue-mans” just seem to be lip-syncing decrees that that have no desire to fulfill. Call it procrastination, or whatever, but these folk play invisible mind games with tomorrow’s destiny, never willing to commit to any purpose, function or activity for the betterment of their souls.

  You probably know the scene all-too-well as “hue-mans” all over the global landscape say things that they never initiate, furthermore complete. “It is what it is,” I guess, as I think about the sadness of uncharted oaths and wishes that so many of us make to no avail.

  In looking at this precarious and whimsical nature that some of us possess, I sense that some of us need to step up to the plate and handle some of the self-professed desires we need to take care. We need to be committed to our wishes with a greater sense of disciplined urgency.

  Wow! That thought has me thinking of a very viable entity in making any resolution, and that’s dealing with the issue of loyalty. I’m a stickler about that subject, because my experiences in life have taught me that there are few real loyal “colored” folk in existence.

  I’m not talking about the folk, who merely talk the talk, but I’m referring to the ones who are on point with their dedication and allegiance to purpose. There’s nothing like it in my book.

  In my view, to be loyal is to honest with one’s self.  That’s very hard for some “colored” folk to do because they hide behind masks of pretentions and allutions.

  Being loyal in the pure essence of the word is to be square with who you are. I often felt that being straight up with “me, myself and I” required a serious amount of pensive honesty.

  And you cannot be straight up with who you are without being a darn good supervisor of yourself. Does that sound very complicated, or am I putting you in a wrong surrounding and spirit to look at who you are?

  Think about that for a stone, cold moment, but don’t delay. “Life waits for no one,” including the procrastinators, who make annual arbitrary New Year’s resolutions often thrown to the winds of ambiguity.

  My late mother used to tell me that the trouble with most “colored” folk, who fail to achieve anything in life, is that they let one else run their houses and lives. She was adamant about that acumen about being loyal (and responsible) to one’s self.

  She said that being unfaithful God and to one’s own spiritual sense of self allows disloyalty and negativity to tiptoe in. And when that happens it sucks the very life out of you because the man or woman with that erroneous regulation runs away from himself or herself.

  My mother emphasized that loyalty was a badge of honor and a sign of personal self-respect before the Almighty. Being loyal is no joke and, unfortunately, many listless whispers of false declarations don’t get it.

  Anyone who knows me knows the importance that I place on being loyal. It’s my daily resolution that was cultivated by you-know-who, my mother, and I love her much for teaching me about its merit.

  She was a seriously committed schoolteacher, who believed in the inherent spirit of God, possessing faith and maintaining family ties. I still hold her principles near to my heart, even at this exact moment that I’m typing my thoughts for this current “As I See It” article.

  Mom said, in her (daily) New Year’s resolutions, that an individual should know his, or her, own possibilities better than any other living soul. She would utter in her sweet and gentle Southern voice, “Son, stay next to your possibilities without hesitation, and study so that you can be loyal to them.”

  I believe that she was telling me a living practical maxim that had a virtue beyond price. Being loyal is a quality you don’t see too often today as so many “colored” folk seemingly flip-flop from one thing to the other with no stern purpose or direct conviction in life.

  I also had the joy of being around some marvelous teachers from the Oriental and Occidental corridors of thinking, who taught me many things. They taught me that the loyal “hue-man”, oftentimes, is always going to be challenged with this or that new whim in life.

  To a point, they related to me that the believer in God Alone, who sticks to his, or her, faith and is loyal—is the individual who commands central growth and spiritual power becomes a part of them. That’s some prudent intellect that should be a part of every “hue-man” soul’s daily New Year’s resolution.

  I attest to that evaluation from those teachers and my mother from throughout the years, because, in my now-present thinking mode, loyalty typifies the symbolism called sacrifice.  All “colored” ethnic folk, who have achieved any worthwhile thing in this life, know that “sacrifice spells and means success.”

  I sense that they had to be loyal to the essence of a resolution that dwelled within their hearts, minds and souls to be “someone.” Like my mother also said, the steps of worldly achievement, honor, fortune and satisfaction are riveted to daily purposeful loyalty.

  That embodies being loyal to one’s work, family, friends and, most of all, to God Alone. Being loyal is nothing to pass over like another year’s resolution.

  Don’t neglect this virtuous quality. It deserves to be recognized for what it is. It’s the surest path for a sincere God Alone fearing seeker of wisdom, who’s making, or made, his or her New Year’s resolutions, and expects them to come into fruition.

  Give praises to God Alone. Be loyal to what you say want to do and then go accomplish it. It does take sweat equity, via hard work, in order to achieve same. Happy New Year, and that’s, “As I See It.”