Ray A. Humphrey II - The Glow: How the Journey to Fulfilling Your Purpose Begins Within

The Glow: How the Journey to Fulfilling Your Purpose Begins Within

Copyright 2019 by Ray A. Humphrey, II

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without the written permission of the author, except where permitted by law.

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ISBN: 978-1-7331994-2-1

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To my foundation, to Him who completed my life before He laid the foundations of the earth. To my biological parents Ray A. Sr. & Adrienne L. Humphrey (deceased) who have always loved me. To Kim Ellis, my second mother, and the entire Ellis family, who welcomed me, loved me, and poured into me with no reservations.

To Buford and Theresa Goff, who doubled-down on unconditional love and kept me grounded. To Papa Billy (deceased) and Granny Helen (deceased), who loved me and provided the foundation to my passion for smoking meat, the original Pitmaster. Granny Maxine, thank you for all your love and support as I evolved into the man I have become. To Aunt Ni & Uncle Mike (deceased), Uncle Buddy & Aunt Debbie(deceased), Uncle Curtis (deceased), Uncle Derrick (deceased), Aunt Casandra (deceased), and all of those who loved me from birth!

To the core, Niecy, Terri, Mario, Marc, my favorite cousin Nikki, Rico, Catricia, Keisha, Kendall, Stan Jr., and that crazy dude Chico; thank you for your love, support, and relationship through the years.

To Mr. & Mrs. Carl Williams, Mr. & Mrs. Merlin Gilyot Jr., and Mr. & Mrs. Michael Snyder, thank you for all of your love, support, and mentoring through the years.

To Mr. Nick Harris, Dr. Charles C. Teamer, Sr., Mrs. Judy Bracy, Mr. Artis Hicks, Mr. Stanley Isidore, Dr. Otis Webster, Dean Janice Bartley, and Ms. Mariam Beasley, I thank you for keeping me focused my freshman year at Dillard University.

To the men and women of Dillard University, the D.O.B. (Division of Business), and those whom I know as extended family, I will always remember Dorgenois, and the relationships solidified through our experiences together. A special thanks goes to Dedric Thompson, my man, thanks for pushing me these past 26 years.

To the oldest and coldest brothers of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Incorporated, Beta Phi Chapter and Sigma Lambda Chapter, and my brother DanjahOne , I thank you for your leadership, wisdom, and kind words over the years. I love all of you and cannot imagine my life without you, especially Beta Phi, F95, Rebirth of Antiquity!

To the uncommon people of Hormel Foodservice, both past and present, I thank you for your gift of new experiences. Through you all, my paradigm has shifted, and I look forward to sharing my experiences with the masses to shift their beliefs, shaping their actions, and leading to their

To my friends and family at Sysco Foodservices of New Orleans, thank you for allowing me to grow with you over the years. Special thanks to the Abrusley family, Oasis Foods, in Lake Charles, LA, the late Mr. Eddie, Wedad, Shadi, Omaia, and Samia.

To the foodservice operators who purchased products I sold, allowing me to flourish over the past 20+ years, Chef Leon West (Aramark), Dino Arvanetes & Angel Lombarge (Voodoo BBQ), Floyd & Ida James (Team Fresh and Go), Rami Bader (Oceana Grill), Chef Patricia Fugit & Chef James Hamilton (Coushatta Casino), Frank Langenbacker (Zea Rotisserie & Bar), Tim Metcalf (Deanos Pizza), Brad Orrison (The Shed BBQ) and countless others, thank you!

To Repiccis Italian Ice, Frank, Jim, and Billy, thanks for the contributions to my experiences, growth, and development.

To my Franklin Avenue Baptist Church Toastmasters, thank you for your support and for always believing in me. Special thanks to Pastor Fred Luter, Jr.

Lastly, but certainly not least, to my wife, Angela Simone Giovanni, my love, my partner, my next breath, mother of our children, Angelica, Angelia, and Ray III, I thank you for always believing in me, supporting me, and putting up with me as I found my Glow. I love you more than words can express.

I am not an ordinary man. Flawed, yes, but not ordinary! You are not an ordinary person. The truth is, none of us are ordinary for we were all fearfully and wonderfully made! I have learned that ordinary is merely a mindset, a perspective, a program we download at birth that ultimately becomes a reality for most people. Ordinary gives rise to mediocrity and a willingness to accept a perpetual less than livelihood; less than you can have, give, and achieve.

I now know we are all extraordinary people, created with intent, by design, with extraordinary abilities for a specific purpose. We all have a gift buried inside of us and it has taken me years to comprehend this concept. There was a time in my life I was not so certain, and I believed most people were simply more talented than me. Some were blessed with better looks, with exceptional athletic ability, and some, just better. I was well loved by my parents and would often hear how handsome and smart I was, but only from adult family members and friends of my parents. As a child, I had low self-esteem. I actually thought if I looked differently, it would make me feel better and more valued. I had no idea what was lying dormant inside of me. My grandmother used to tell me I talked too much. She said it so often, I thought it was a flaw. Little did I know, my desire to talk was attached to my gift, but it would take me years to discover it.

When this realization originally came to me more than 30 years ago, I had no idea that I had been exposed to it. The message was clear, but I was too young to absorb and process it. The idea remained dormant in my subconscious mind for nearly thirty-one years before I rediscovered it; The Glow. I remember it as if it were yesterday.

I was not at church when I heard about it, nor was I attending any camp or self-help summit; I was sitting on my living room floor with my sisters, watching a VHS movie. For you young readers, VHS cassettes preceded DVDs and streaming movie formats! What was the title of the movie I watched, the film that planted a seed deep inside my mind; it was none other than The Last Dragon, produced by Rupert Hitzig for Berry Gordy, the founder of Motown! I thoroughly enjoyed the movie, but it took me more than three decades to comprehend the transformational message embedded in the film.

The Last Dragons opening scene shows Leroy Green, Jr. (Taimak Guarriello) training with his sensei, his martial arts instructor. During his routine, Leroy is challenged to break arrows shot in his direction by his sensei, but with one caveat. The arrows are color-coated, red and blue. Leroy must break all the red arrows by chopping them in half. However, Leroy must not break, but catch the blue arrow. The only problem is he cannot see the arrows, but must anticipate which ones to break, and which one to catch. Remarkably, he passes the test and begins to feel a sense of accomplishment. According to his Sensei, Leroy has mastered the art of knowing without knowing.

It is at this point Leroy expects to be promoted to a kung fu master and receive the coveted Glow. The Glow is a state of being where the kung fu masters hands emit a reddish light giving them elevated power and strength. Even greater, the truly accomplished kung fu master will emit a golden glow, not just around ones hands, but covering the entire body giving superhuman strength and making him unstoppable. Though his sensei acknowledged his completion of the final level, to Leroys surprise, there was no Glow. Leroy is told he must find the master in order to be elevated to the level of kung fu master, and to receive The Glow. While Leroy sets out on his journey to find the master, he meets a damsel in distress, who is facing pressures of her own. Laura Charles (Vanity) is being bullied and threatened by a businessman who wants to have his girlfriends music played on television during her