I Have Something to Say

By Fred F. Taylor

This is a book of anecdotes, humorous quotes, metaphors, poetry, and rhetoric that I have gathered on this journey called life.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Feb 3, 2021
• ISBN: 9781664151970

Fred F. Taylor

Fred Fernandez Taylor is a resident of Miami Gardens, Florida. Along with his beloved wife, Roberta (deceased), he raised and is the father of two adult sons, Fred Fernandez Taylor II and Daniel Darnell Taylor. Fred is a graduate of Klemmer Leadership and Development. He partnered with Klemmer and Associates to help build homes in Tijuana, Mexico. He also partnered with Charity: Water and Water.org to help fund the digging of fresh water wells in third-world countries. Fred enjoys reading, writing, and inspiring others through the printed page and blogging. An admirer of nature, he also enjoys taking long walks in the wilderness. Fred encourages you with this phrase: “Be here, be now!”

Book preview

Copyright © 2021 by Fred Taylor.

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 permission in writing from the copyright owner.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

Scripture taken from the King James Version of the Bible.

Scripture quotations marked AMP are from The Amplified Bible, Old Testament copyright © 1965, 1987 by the Zondervan Corporation. The Amplified Bible, New Testament copyright © 1954, 1958, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. Website

Scripture quotations marked NIV are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved. [Biblica]

Illustration by Karen Blanchet

Blanchet Fine Arts

https://karenblanchet.ca

Bookcover by Carl Greaves

Extended Imagery

https://extendedimagery.com/

Rev. date: 01/13/2021

Xlibris

844-714-8691

www.Xlibris.com

823756

CONTENTS

Preface

Introduction

Cell Phones In Traffic

Rhonda The Remora

The Sweet Potato, Or When All Else Fails, Follow The Directions

The Three Ways To Get A Job Done

Time And Distance

Trust

Baby Daddy/Momma Drama

Never Move Into A Woman’s House

A Journey Through A Dark Night Of The Soul

Common Sense

Paper And Brains

Create

Do It Yourself

No

Predetermined Law

Feelings

Flow

Flow 2

Hurt, Help, Heal

How Do You Feel?

I Am Sorry

Impressions

It Ain’t That Serious

Silent/Listen

Your Heart

Read

A Professional

Marriage

Life Is A Wave

Military Wisdom

Don’t Get Caught Pissing In The Clipper.

Jog, Dumb Airman, Jog!

Hey, Sarge, You Look Shitty.

Don’t Overshoot The Runway While The Barrier Is Down.

Don’t Miss Ship Movement.

Lending Money

No More Manna

On Success

Pastoral Wisdom

Warning About Being Closed-Minded

Perfection

Red Light!

Sexual Fidelity

Spiritual Wisdom From The Country

Get All You Can, And Can All You Get.

No Passive Bystanders

The Playing Field

That’s Spilled Milk

Better Pissed Of Than Pissed On

Never Piss These People Off

Wisdom From The Gridiron Practice Field

Your Business

Keep You Mouth Close

Flower, The Six-Hundred-Pound Gorilla

We Won! Y’all Lost!

On Debt

Don’t Play The Game Until The Cards Are Dealt.

Keep Moving

Guard You Heart

The Finger And The Glass Of Water Test

Tabula Rasa

Just Ask

The Highest Purpose In Life

The Potential

A Closed And Unchangeable Mind

Be Careful Of What You Chase

Everything You Want

Key To Eliminating Disappointment

Where Is Your Heart?

The Two Dogs

Don’t Drop Your Candy In The Sand

Be Careful Of What You Are Chasing

More Ain’t Than What Is

Nature Abhors A Vacuum

Nothing Happens Until Something Moves

Take A Risk

Economy Based On Death

The Power Of A Thought

Pick One

What, You Don’t Like My Answers?

A Place For Those Who Cherish Insanity

The Three Ways To Say No!

All Haters

Chains

Everyone Has A Song

They

I Am Me

I Am Who I Am

Friend

The Dark Room Of The Subconscious

The Willfully And Blissfully Ignorant

Think It Through

Unfulfilled Expectations

Giving Advice

Be Mindful Of Your Actions

Be Mindful Of Who You Are Listening To

Stung

Stay In Your Lane

Haste Makes Waste

Reevaluate Your Nouns

It Ain’t Locked Unless …

How You Play The Game

Two Schools Of Knowledge

Feeling Philosophical

Speak And Eat Life

Always Close The Circle

What You Allow People To Do

No Response Is A Response

This book—containing anecdotes, humorous quotes, metaphors, poetry rants, and rhetoric, which I have gathered on the journey called life—is dedicated to my sons, Fred and Daniel.

PREFACE

I wrote this book for my sons, Fred and Daniel, so that they would have access to the wisdom, knowledge, wit, and humor that I experienced while growing up. It contains information I received from divine inspiration, friends, high school coaches, spiritual leaders, mentors, coworkers, and life in general.

INTRODUCTION

I often wonder what my life would be like if I knew what I know now when I was seventeen. If it were possible, I’d take this book, go back to October 14, 1972, and give it to myself, just like old Biff did in Back to the Future. I’d tell myself that this is a book of practical wisdom, and if I were to absorb and incorporate it into my life, I’d be successful. Unfortunately, I can’t do that—yet. So I am giving this book to my sons and hope that they will do the same for their children.

A CROOK IS A CROOK IS A CROOK!(This is an excerpt taken from a training orientation speech I gave to a group of female correctional aides prior to them being assigned to work in the Miami-Dade County Pre-Trial Detention Center. Its intent is to warn them about getting involved with the inmates.)

On August 29, 1977, I started working for what was then Dade County Corrections and Rehabilitation Department. One of the first and most valuable lessons I learned was a crook is a crook is a crook. I learned that you never ever trust an inmate because trusting an inmate is like playing with fire. If you play with fire, you are going to get burned. Once incarcerated, an inmate’s thinking shifts to survival of the fittest. They will do and say, without reservation, whatever they feel it takes for them to survive. In their minds, you are just another victim. They feel they have nothing to lose when they attempt to sweet talk, entice, or seduce you. You won’t have any problems if you remember that a crook is a crook is a crook! Never trust them.

A MATTER OF TIME(This is an excerpt taken from a letter I wrote to a church that I was breaking off fellowship with.)Well, sir, allow me to state for the record that my motivations are different from the others. My motivations have to do with two things.

1. I have reached a point in my life where I am not moved by what people say. I have learned that it is not what is said to me or about me that matters; it is how I respond to what is said to me or about me that matters. You see, I don’t allow people to determine how I feel by what they say. I don’t give that kind of control to anyone.

2. Being a pastor, I have to consider the fact that the people under my leadership have not reached the level that I am at; therefore, they have different needs than I have. As a familiar axiom states, The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few or the one.

And finally, all things are subject to change; all things come to an end. It is just a matter of time.

The point that I was making is that it was time for us to go our separate ways. When you step into the role of leadership, your first priority must be your people. You cannot allow anyone or anything to harm the people, not even yourself. This will be easy if you will remember that everything that has a beginning has an end. It’s just a matter of time.

APPEARANCES: Never Judge a Book by Its Cover(The following are statements made to a young inmate who was causing problems in a cell and challenging my authority.

—Sgt. Fred F. Taylor)

I am not stupid. I just look like I am.

Don’t allow my gray hair to fool you.

Your perception is your reality! As you go through life, you will find that some people will look at your appearance and draw erroneous conclusions about you. This frequently happened to me all throughout my life and career as a correctional officer. In fact, this still happens to me. They can’t help it. They are victims of their programming.

We all grow up with certain perceptions, which we tend to apply to situations that reinforce them. For instance, some people come to negative conclusions regarding your intelligence based solely on your appearance. When that happens to me, I immediately enlighten the individual by stating, I am not stupid. I just look like I am. This lets that person know that their perception of me is flawed. Another instance surrounds the graying of my hair. Some people equate gray hair with the elderly and weakness. Wrong again! The premature graying of my head has absolutely nothing to do with my age and certainly nothing to do with me being weak, as a very young and inexperienced inmate learned one day. He was causing problems in a cell, and I had to intervene, or his cellmates would have stomped a mudhole in his behind. He insisted that he was not the problem. However, he was not aware that I had observed his behavior and concluded that he was indeed the problem. I would have to relocate