The story of the
life of Phillip Cooper and how he came from drug addiction to greatness, this
man has truly walked, ran, crawled through and transformed his life into a
purpose to live.
No one in this
world knows when they will die, where they will die, or how they will die. Many
people on earth try to predict a man's future no one knows what tomorrow holds
for you yesterday is history and tomorrow is a mystery. Phillip fell victim to
that statistics and graphs he was the two out of three that ended up in a
penitentiary and on drugs through determination and a desire to stay alive he
fought for a position to go to through the fire and pressure and ended up as a
diamond he turned his mess into a message and his test into a testimony his aim
is to inspire the world by telling his story “HIS WHY!”
I grew up in
Columbia South Carolina It’s where my classmates and friends fought for
position in projects like Sexton homes, Henly homes, Gonzale gardens, Fairfield
Arms, Kings court and The Bishop, Most of them lost their lives in freedom
because they didn’t beat the odds. My mother raised my three siblings and I by
herself because my pops was a heroin addict. My oldest brother was the first to
get lost in the sauce of the street life breaking in houses, stealing cars and
selling drugs. Even though my mother did all she could to stop me from
following the footsteps of my brother, her tough love and butt whooping’s
didn’t do any good., I was already tainted by wanting to be a part of it. My
brother always called me a momma’s boy or punk because I always wanted to stay
under my momma’s umbrella of safety. Unbeknownst to me by my brother and our
peers, choosing the street life was one major choice that will cause us and
everybody that we meet a lot of heartache and pain.
My uncle Ted sold cocaine right across the street from where we
stayed, He was a very private person, never said too much only hustled and made
money.
My mother had two
jobs, she worked for a check and her other job was to make sure my brother and
I didn’t get trapped off in the metro street’s, She struggled to make ends
meet, but her prayers kept the family going with the help of her mother.
My uncle taught
me my first hustle cutting grass and raking yards in the white folks
neighborhood, He brought a brand new lawn mower and gas can and told me to go
make my own money, The street life was always calling, but the white folks
neighborhood was an outlet of escape from he hood. There was one street by
Melrose Park that separated us from them; I use to stand in from of the
beautiful house with a swing set, well-
manicured lawn
and a SUV in the driveway, a daydream. After knocking on about 15 doors and
asking did anyone need their yard raked or grass cut, I made about 40 dollars
and back home to reality, I use to give my mom all the money except 5 dollars,
which I used to go to Shielings or Nates corner store to buy candy and cookies.
As time started
to speed up, fear, low self-esteem, and low self worth became my best friends.
After making some failed attempts to follow my brother, breaking in houses and
stealing cars, my mother sent me to stay with m grandmother in Greenview, I
hated that because across town and Greenview was like night and day. I had the
across town virus of fuck it, running the streets was apart of my DNA and my
grandmothers house was like rehab or prison. Unbeknownst to me, my
grandmother’s house was the hope shot, the safe haven for me. It was my mothers
was of saying the streets already has one of my sons; at least I can save the
other one. But everywhere I went I took me with ME. I helped my grandmother
with my 100% disabled uncle, He was confined to a wheelchair since he was 17,
when he was 50 years old, he 6’5, and 230 lbs. of dead weight. I changed is
pamper, fed him, washed him and dressed him. Little did I know that this was
giving me an opportunity to escape from the street life?
After a while
that shit got old. I started running the streets again and committed my first
armed robbery at God Fathers Pizza, unfortunately my friend and I got caught
but my mother was able to get me out because I was a juvenile. That wasn’t it
the street life over powered me and I dropped out of high school in the 10th grade, what the
hell, the teachers said I had a learning disability and I was emotionally
handicapped and I also got tired of being picked at because I stayed in the
same class all day. My peers picked at me saying that I was in the seat belt
class.
After following
my brothers foot steps, by ending up in the department of juvenile services for
45 days for armed robbery. I became a 24-hour street runner. My grandmother
always said if you make your bed you will have to lie in it, My grandmother had
a lot of old sayings but thought that wasn’t for me, she said
things like GOD
looks out for the babies and fools, you will get carried by 6 or judge by 12,
and GOD bless a child with his own but all that fail on deaf ears and I had to
learn the hard way, after experimenting with alcohol, beer, weed, and cocaine.
I fell short of the glory of GOD. I didn’t graduate from high school, I had the
monkey see monkey do and I know it all syndrome, which always lead me down the
wrong path. I graduated from laced joints to the glass cracked pipe at the age
of 21, I didn’t beat the odds, I was the 1 in 3 that ended up on drugs and
I was the 4 in 10
that dropped out of school. I was also one of 150,000 inmates that didn’t take
ownership of my actions, always blaming someone else, including white folks,
the police, the school system, and of course “the haters”, If could a, should,
would a, If it wasn’t for them and my parents and shit!
While I was blame gaming, my son, nieces, nephews, and cousins was
getting older. When I began to open my eyes, almost 15 years had passed, I’ve
had been through the jail system 3 times in a row.
Everything that
I’ve got I strived for, many of times I wished I could have turn back the hands
of time. That was just a thought.
I ran the metro
streets with a reckless disregard towards life, all the while cause and effect
along with action and reaction was taking place right in front of my eyes. M
classmates and friends was dyeing to go to the graveyard with their dreams
while the rest of us caught 25 year to life sentences due to our terrible
decisions.
On the journey
some may say to nowhere but I say to somewhere, I’ve found m aim and purpose in
a jail cell.
I’ve taught more
in my darkest days then any lighted classroom. I achieved labels like jack boy,
real nigga, crack head dope fiend, and more.
At this point
everything that my grandmother said was true, GOD look out for the babies and
the fools, I was a fool, but GOD’s mercy and grace was there for me the whole
time. If you make your bed you will have to lie in it. I’ve reaped what I
sowed. I’m the one had lay in that jail cell bed. You will be carried by 6 or
judged by 12, Thank GOD I was judged by 12. “GOD blessed a child with his own”
I finally realized when my grandmother said it, that she wasn’t referring to a
big house, nice car, or a beautiful wife, she said that was the smaller
picture, the bigger picture was what was inside of you, your gifts, talents,
and greatness.
I found my
greatness and potential inside of a 5x10 jail cell. September 27, 2013 my life
was change. September the 25th 2013, I was smoking crack in my mothers
bathroom, “you have to do better for yourself” she said “you can not smoke
crack anymore in my bathroom”
She brought me a
ticket to Charlotte, North Carolina. When I left Columbia, South Carolina, I
didn’t have anything but hope. I rode that wave of hope to a detox in charlotte
to Atlanta, GA. All I had was an Obama phone with 5 seconds on it, some dirty
clothes, my last paycheck and a debit card. I stayed in 3 homeless shelters and
I never looked back. Yes life showed up, curve balls came, speed bumps and
potholes hit me but I never gave up!
All that I went
through was only waking up my greatness, my grandmother was right, GOD bless
the child with his own, you have your own thinking, gifts, talents and
greatness. September 27, 2018, Ill be clean 5 years with no mind altering or
mood
changing substance. I’ve decided to take that one step towards
greatness, I will never give up, and I’ve turned my mess into a message and my
test into a testimony!
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