SEAHO Report - Winter 2020 - 29

SEAHO Feature Articles
As this is one of my favorite and frequented films, it's been a recent reflection
that I not only applaud the compelling acting performances, but I resonate with
the characters' twists and turns through manhood and the pertinent process in
unpacking and redefining masculinity. More specifically, Black masculinity. I
realized I connect with the film's depicted reframing of Black male myths and
truths; particularly around Black masculinity and Black male vulnerability.
This Black male intersectionality is one that I have spent more intentional time
unpacking in order to dive deeper in the process to unlearn and relearn what my
Black masculinity was and is, what my Black male vulnerability was and is, and
how the two compliment and contrast one another.
Let it be known the two topics individually nor the intersectionality of them are easy to discuss at all, much less
in a public platform such as this quarterly publication. More specifically, it has taken nearly a full year to even
exhale the digested feelings of frustration and Black identity displacement from a hard-to-swallow-pill of
disappointment during a career search. Nevertheless, I was able to navigate the noes with active
acknowledgement to constantly name what they are and how they show up in personal and professional spaces.
It has taken a "deeper" level of consistency and commitment to this part of my self-work process to stretch for
holistic growth and improved understanding of myself.
In the late part of last year's summer academic term, I noticed quite a number of attractive next-step career
opportunities surfacing. After rigorous review and some check-ins with my "kitchen cabinet community"
regarding a certain position description, I decided this was the position and this was the year to "shoot my shot."
After a phone interview that felt to have fared well, I did not hear anything for quite some time until a colleague
emailed me about a mutual friend getting a new job. Guess what? It was the job for which I had phone
interviewed. So apparently, the shot I shot was at the wrong basket! Well, that did not feel too good.
Nevertheless, I shook it off with a "not my season" spiritual justification to comfort my conscious and the harsh
reality of the news. After a little time went by, another career opportunity surfaced and it was EXACTLY what I
saw my next career step being. I immediately prayed about it, checked with my kitchen cabinet community
again, prayed some more, and peacefully submitted my application materials to this second position. After some
waiting and wondering, I successfully passed a first-round phone call to be invited as an on-campus finalist.
Wow. I felt the odds of this opportunity to be shifting for the better. Perhaps
that hard-to-swallow no in late 2018 was to make room for this yes in early
2019. I danced with nervous jitters throughout the night before the on-campus
interview. Through the interview experience, it all unfolded and concluded as
feeling meant-to-be. This opportunity felt to be a mutual match in the housing
heavens! I checked back in with a few select folks to debrief and lightly discuss
potential outcomes. The interview and the campus community felt so fluid that
before I left the area, I stopped by a few off-campus communities to view some
potential living areas. This felt really good. Again, it felt meant-to-be. After some
time passed, I was in Virginia with my son when I received a phone call from
a familiar unsaved number. Once I noticed the area code, I knew it was THAT
phone call. Then it happened.

SEAHO Report Winter 2020

SEAHO Report - Winter 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of SEAHO Report - Winter 2020