As I stand here today serenading with the sound of love and unity,
commingling with Mother Earth,
I think of the great sage manifested 70 years past from an eternal birth.
He was instilled with the physicality of primates,
the insight of Eagles,
the spiritualism of Owls,
and the perception of Felines.
Which correlates to a mind so divine,
but often too complex to understand
by the average woman and man
blessed with the hand, to lead and follow God’s every command.
Today, I reflect on a man who rose from darkness to light,
ghettos to property ownership;
A man who taught his seeds the underlying truth
of the challenges of Black men in America
only to be eased by our women’s strength and healing.
He provided the tools and resources for my sisters and me
to grow strong and relentless like vines.
So, Happy 70th Born Day to the giving hand that boxed his way out of the Camden, New Jersey projects,
where it grew with stratagem and competence
from Ghana to the US to provide divinity
so our people can progress,
influence, and overcome division.
A hand that opens doors to let others through while offering sanctity and wisdom.
Doors with solutions that our minds yearn
for opportunity and equal rights while our hearts burn,
From the happiness of small DC apartments on the streets of Girad
to the comfort of rustic houses on Columbia Road.
Drums beating, songs chanting, kids laughing,
forgetting when times were hard.
What a mesmerizing period —
when meals were grown in backyards
and family trips with the sisters were enchanting.
Thus, our father’s path was ordained by the Most High
That set him on a course ripe with challenges to pass by.
In the Marines, for example, he maxed physical fitness tests and made everyone the fool,
while placing second in its advanced educational schools.
A man who began writing award-winning poetry with no formal degree
formed the Pyramid Poets, the first rhythmic group with a band in the late 70s.
A man today who dances across the globe,
spinning three women at a time when he hears the perfect beat unfold.
In 1995 he orchestrated an array of pioneering contributions,
Including the first automotive magazine website in the U.S.
It was just one of his many attributions.
He published African-American, Latino, and Asian car magazines
and produced the most upscale and diverse events on the scene.
The first in his family with a college degree and advanced scores.
He went from a Washington Post writer to an Afro-American newspaper editor and more.
Now, he is handing out grades as a professor in HBCUs to add to his resume.
The U.S. Department of Commerce Minority Enterprise Agency granted him the top national minority media award.
And the U.S. President once appointed him to the
Blue Ribbon Vehicle Safety Board.
The same man who taught his daughter culinary art also passed on auto journalism and health marketing to his son.
He now points the path of righteousness to his eight grandchildren and three great-grandsons.
Always ahead of his time
He helped to create thousands of jobs without extending
his hand for a dime.
He mentored, trained, and taught truth
and distributed more than $1 million in scholarships to our youth.
The mark that his work left on the auto industry remains.
The role of diversity in this sector all goes to his name.
Randi is the man who built bridges with Nelson Mandela
and formed a kinship with Oprah Winfrey, to name a few.
He will continue to climb ladders to higher heights.
Making a difference in the world and its interesting plight
After 70 years, you can attempt to break this man,
But his willpower will easily overcome.
Again, no matter the time or the struggles,
and how rigid the world begins to bother,
Randolph Payton was, and will always be an immaculate father!
Happy Born Day pops!!!
Kimatni D. Rawlins, Poetic Thought, July 5th, 2024
