The Fork in the Road

This I Believe

I had once thought that God purposely made two types of people in this world. These two groups consist of people who are good and people who are bad. For years when I was still young, I had concluded that criminals and druggies had been created the way they are by God and that they had no other choice but to carry out God’s wills. This was my theory that I had lived by until I was confronted by a criminal who helped me to realize that people are initially good.

My uncle’s name is Roger. He is tall and scrawny and his teeth are darker than the color of his skin. He has been in and out of jail for drug usage. I have never seen him before and took to him as a stranger who, on the day of my great grandmother’s funeral, had decided to attend. The funeral was long and the sun was beating down and everyone’s neck. During the funeral, I closely watched my uncle’s every move trying to catch him doing something he was not supposed to be doing. However, after careful observations, I’ve come to realize something. All my uncle had done was shake hands with relatives, shared hugs with loved ones, and shed tears when the ceremony had begun. He then came to me, picked me up, and gave me a kiss on my cheek. “Hey little one.” he said. I watched as he walked away, confused. I soon developed a new theory. God created every man and woman equal, everyone had come out of God’s factory as a neutral person. As this person started on his journey, he will realize that there are many forks in the road. This person will then have to decide whether he wants to take the road which leads to nothing or the one that leads to success.

A man in a cold and lonely cell and a man in a big, comfortable office making big bucks did not begin life differently from one another. Both were brought into the world as a neutral human being.

However, as these two children grew, one has decided to take the path that leads nowhere at the fork in the road. This led to abuse, drug use, and maybe murder and earned him a nice spot in prison. The other man, on the other hand, took the path to success and was able to make something out of himself. In other words, choices are what determine who we are. I believe that every human being is good at heart but some made mistakes along the way. For instance NFL superstar Michael Vick, who is now in prison for dog abuse, had been a good guy. Vick was a tremendous player and was friendly to his coaches and teammates. Vick had a good life and a good career ahead of him, but he decided to abuse dogs. Because of this, Michael has lost everything and is probably living with regrets. Another example would be Martin Luther King Jr. Many people thought bad of him because he was of African American decent. But King dedicated his life to what he believed in and what he believed in was that every man was created equal. Because of him, life is better for many African Americans living in America.

A good or bad person is not determined by what his skin color is, what language he speaks, or what type of family he comes from. He is judged by his performance in life and the choices he makes. King had chosen a good life, he decided to help others and to make other peoples’ lives better. Vick chose to break the law. Both men were born equal and both man are good at heart. This I believe.