by Allen Ginnett
I rap under the alias, “Based Jesus.” I have the spirit of Jesus within me. I have sacrificed a lot to do what I want. Life wasn’t always like this for me. At one time I was young and naive, wandering around vulnerable to the world’s danger, unaware of what force was driving my existence.
My friend Sergio has an older brother named Donte. Donte was sort of the bully growing up. But not like the bully that you might of grew up with the cliche make fun of you or give you a wedgie type bully, I’m talking more of like a drug dealer on edge, beat the fuck out of you type bully. Anyways, one day when I was around my early teens I was with Sergio after playing basketball at his house and Dante came in the room. I was already scared; I was an only child, I was not used to this stuff and all I had heard was crazy stories. Dante looked around the room and laughed, “Damn, y’all hangin’ out with this Kyle Korver lookin’ motherfucker, huh?” Serge just looked at him blankly. He walked up closer to me and asked, “Where does Jesus live?” This question was something out of a Socrates dialogue. How was I expected to know such a thing? I thought for a second and answered, “Uh, I don’t know. The sky?” Time stopped for a second. Out of nowhere the hardest punch I’ve ever felt to the chest hit me like a ton of bricks, and I bent over gasping for air. “He lives in your heart,” Dante said as he walked over to the table and picked up a construction hard hat. “Now put this on,” he said, as I walked over to him no hesitation and put the helmet on.
I’ve never been religious but in my a single moment, a person from a completely different world ingrained the concept of Jesus into my psyche for the rest of life. To understand the force that drives your life is something unmistakable. There is more than just ones and zeros going threw my mind dividing information into connections. Something is driving that, my heart. And Jesus, lives in my heart. Thank you, Donte.
Allen Ginnett is a creative writer born and raised in Anchorage, Alaska. He lives life freely, finding sources of expression naturally. Past times of his include sports, music and painting.
