Matthew Lang was born in to THE GANG when he was eight or
nine years old, so I guess you might say he was born again, and although this
rebirth is not the same as being “washed by the blood”; we do believe in the
security of the believer – which means: once a gang member, always a gang
member. So, despite his becoming a “man” today, for us he will always be that
precocious little boy with the quick replies; before the wooly mammoth days, before the saxophone, before Wal-mart, driving, NKU,
nursing school, or any of the stuff he might be hiding now.
Most of us old heads fondly remember turning 21, though for
me it did not mean more drinking (I didn’t drink before and I didn’t start, I’m
just odd that way; I guess), it simply meant becoming what most people referred
to as an adult; or to put it another way, one year closer to being considered
wise. In my case, after reading Carlos Castaneda’s “Teachings of Don Juan” on becoming a man of knowledge, I sort of privately took that on as a
project. I have since learned it is anything but a straight-line journey and
definitely not directly correlated with age. In fact, it is more often one step
forward and two steps back. Matthew is surely learning that now, because
it is easy to see he has set himself out a course of lifelong learning.
Although he turns 21 today, it does not appear to be a major
transition point, since he has for years been a hard-working, hard-studying person;
finding the resolve to do what is required, able to be a student, band member,
son, employee, and friend – all while holding on to the irreverent perspective
on life we all know and love.
As is the case with a lot of people I have known who are inclined toward
the medical field, Matthew spent a lot of his early years in the presence of
physicians and nurses; given how his infancy was more complicated than most,
although I will not and probably could, not recount the details for you. I
guess he imprinted like a little duck on some nurse, because now he is on the
verge of becoming a nurse himself, and plans to pursue more degrees after that.
Matthew is in good company with our group of friends since
most of us were the first in our families to go to college; but I honestly do
not believe I worked as hard as Matthew has. By the time I was
twenty-one I had spent three summers in the dirty oil fields, but during
college semesters, I relied on Pell Grants, Tanga’s social security and Raleigh’s
occasional charity; to concentrate on my studies. Matthew would not know what it’s like to have free time, so let me just
tell you now, Matt; it’s overrated; and you are right to stay busy, even
though sometimes when I think of your schedule, it makes me tired.
Matt: your life is like reading an interesting biography
being written right before my eyes and I
can’t wait for the next page.
Happy 21st.
