Three weeks ago, the world lost a legend. He was a young legend, not even old in terms of the years he spent executing his craft. Nevertheless, he was an icon and a gift to those whose lives he impacted. He was a superhero, a strong Black super cat, an inspiration. He was our Black Panther. He was Chadwick Boseman.
I don’t want to write a blog about a comic book character to tell this story, so I won’t. Instead, I will talk about how legends like Chadwick inspire people to live fully, and on purpose.
Like many people I know, I didn’t personally know this man, but I felt him. I felt his soul through the cameras that mesmerized me when I saw his toothy smile (which by the way, I personally adored). I felt the way he cared about people by how his work would affect others who were watching him. I connect with that. It was important for people to see someone like him, a Black man, who defied anti-Blackness at a time when the world was becoming increasingly hostile towards Black existence.
From the beginning of his film career I was in awe of this guy. I didn’t know what it was about him at first. But, I’ll tell you what I have come to feel his life reminded me about integrity, something I’ve talked about in my book, “Adulting As A Millennial: A Guide to Everything Your Parents Didn’t Teach You”:
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- Create representations and experiences within your life that have purpose.
- Let your spirit transcend your title and the roles that you play.
- Be remembered for how you make people feel (a replay on a quote from Dr. Maya Angelou).
- Create representations and experiences within your life that have purpose.
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When I reflect on what it means to live a life well lived I think of this: it is not the years one lives that makes a difference, but rather the impact one makes in the time they live.
I am sincerely grateful to have lived at a time when this man was alive and to experience agape the way I have imagined life can be experienced in this time. Thank you Chadwick Boseman, for showing us how to live a beautiful life, reimagined in #BlackExcellence.
*This blog is about becoming free. It’s a reflection of introspective thoughts and experiences that have crossed miles of self-discovery. I created this blog to inspire others to live life with less self-criticism, judgment and openness to new experiences. May you find that you learn how to live a life by design and on your own terms!*