Mobsters & Gods

Writing Prompt: What’s a moment in your life that felt like it was straight out of a movie?

When I think of a moment in which my life became cinematic, I can not think of a singular event. I have had many experiences that seemed unreal. If asked a few years ago, I would say it was a moment when I was at University.

My very first night in Pittsburgh, I roamed the streets at midnight looking for a way to fill my stomach with twenty bucks. Walking downtown, I noticed immediately that Pittsburgh was not like my hometown, Atlantic City. A 24-hour destination. Downtown Pittsburgh promptly shut down by 10 pm at the latest. As I passed every closed sign, my stomach began to growl, hangry and with no idea of what I was doing or where I was going, disappointment reared it head.

I was about to turn around and head back to my hotel when I heard a call across the street. I looked up and two guys were walking. I stopped and yelled across the street, “Is there a store open around here?” and they replied, “Yes, One and we will take you.”

Answered prayers.

Those two guys became my protectors, my entire time in Pittsburgh. One weekend, as we were hanging out, they told me there was a meeting they needed to attend and that I could join. It was about 1 am. We walked up to a store from and a middle eastern man opened the door. We followed him to the back and through another door that led to a staircase. When we reached the top, the room opened up to a private board room.

As I looked around, there were different groups sat around the long rectangular table. The room was packed. People sat in groups. At the head was a guy I had met a few days earlier when my friends and I were roaming downtown. Immediately I felt like I should not be here.

Long story short….it was definitely some kind of gang/mob meeting of the territories. It was like something out of the movies.

Fast forward, many years later, I decided I wanted to write an animated musical biopic about my life. And in return, God said…”Bet! Hold my beer!” Cracked its knuckles and got to work.

What happened next was something like the greatest, most ancient story ever told. A story of love, loss, war, and everything in between. It put my mob/gangster memory to shame.lol

There is nothing more gangster than a story written by God.

A story where you surrender all that was, to attain all that was already written.

A story where you plant seeds in different terrain, and as such, some grow, some die, some never plant, and some get eaten.

A story where it was never about the destination but the journey of unconditional love in a place that fears it and feels threatened.

And lastly, a story of resilience in the face of great odds and misconceptions. Realizing, it was never about the ending, but the encounters on the path and the seeds that are planted along the way.

Many will judge what they do not understand. This is because they rely on their personal understanding rather than Universal truths.

Universal Truths and Earthly truths are not mutually exclusive.

The truth is this…any paths that do not plant seeds for the future is a path that leads to nowhere.