Being Down With It

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Do you know how nowadays it is really cool to be what the generation X 'ERs call "Bout it". Back in the days it was called being hip, groovy, radical and a bunch of other names to express coolness to the fullness. Well to be cool isn't bad unless you take things out of proportion, like smoking weed to impress your friends, robbing someone to impress the crowd, drinking liquor because Joe blow does it. Having sex because Sally did it. All this isn't cool. Being yourself is cool; not submitting to peer pressure is being real.

I got this partner by the name of Kathy. Kathy was what you'd call a down girlfriend or friend, but Kathy was loyal and down for the wrong cause, and the wrong people. Kathy's life started downhill one summer when she was fifteen years old. She met this guy who was in her hometown visiting relatives. Kathy was a virgin, her and the guy started to date and she was falling in love with the dude. Just a month before school started Back old boy started talking "big girl" talk to Kathy about having sex, you know the stuff about all the girls her age were doing it, and if you truly love me you do it with me to seal our love forever. So under this pressure for about a month she broke down and gave him some sex. Finally when it was time for the dude to go back, Kathy was so attached to him she thought she would go crazy, she wasn't noticing ever since she had sex with him he would make up excuses whenever she called trying to see him. She knew he was about to leave and she wanted to spend a lot of time with her love.

He left and she was back in school. She talked to him occasionally although she called every day. One day his mother informed her he was in jail messing around with his gang friends. Kathy never knew he was in a gang, and didn't want to believe it, no they must have a mistaken him for someone else she thought. When he got out Kathy had some important news. She was pregnant two months at that. She told old boy and he assured her he would take care of his child but she needed to be there in his hometown with him. Kathy told him she couldn't leave her home because she had to go school and on top of that her parents wouldn't let her. Although she hadn't told her parents about the baby she was sure they would be overjoyed about the baby. Her mom & dad never talked to her about sex so she figured it wasn't a big deal. So she told the guy she would talk to him when she talked to her parents. That night she told her parents she was pregnant. Her mom started crying and her dad slapped her on the spot. That night she left the house and called her boyfriend. She told him what had happened and he assured her everything would be all right because he was by her side. She didn't know that while he was in jail he had the befriended this old pimp who taught him about pimping women, and he told him to reel her in and make her come to his hometown where she doesn't know anyone and she'll do anything if put in the right situations all for love.

So with this in mind the guy led Kathy to his hometown where he first led her to have an abortion, then put her to the test in the streets. She did everything for him because she wanted to be down for her man and she loved him. After awhile she had started to wise up to his game but the streets were like a plague once she was in them, that was all she knew. So after two years she was a product of the streets down for whatever her crew was down for until one night while they were pulling off a robbery things went bad. A guy got a pistol, shots were fired. Kathy and the victim were shot, the victim died, Kathy lived but now she was charged with capital murder. While she sat in the hospital, her friends turned state on her for a lesser sentence. Instead of taking it to court and getting the death penalty, she copped out to a plea bargain for life without parole sentence. There are alot of ways to look at this story, alot to learn. First not talking to their daughter about sex, Kathy's parents let the streets teach her. Second Kathy had the wrong sense of being down. Anyone who loves you wants nothing but the best for you, taking the risk of getting pregnant was something a person who loved you wouldn't want for you when your whole life was at stake. Third the first sign of someone who is trouble ought to be an indication for you to leave that person alone.

Like I said there are many ways to look at this story, there are also many ways one could correct the wrongs before they get too far. So let's do this in our own homes, let us to pay attention to our children, let's not turn our back on the teenagers in jail there is hope for us all, but we must be united. Instead of daring your friends to rob that man, dare your friend to score higher than you on the upcoming test. Instead of passing the next blunt to your friend pass on some knowledge that can further their education. Instead of persuading your girlfriend to have sex, persuade her to become a doctor. You see peer pressure can be good and bad, that's being bout it.

Jonsha Bell #58432

Email Dark Sorrow