Being into extreme sports you meet a lot of different people over your lifetime, but do you really know them? People judge each other on what they know and see, and maybe don’t realize that it could be the past of a person that is what really makes them who they are. You only know someone from the time you first meet them, your grandparents are wrinkled and grey, you mom or dad are already grown ups and it’s hard to picture them any other way, or believe that they used be crazy teenagers like yourself at one time. Even when you see pictures of people you know that existed before you knew them, you don’t fully believe it.
What do you know about me? Who am I anyway?
Maybe you were there when I was helping the sport of snowboarding progress to the point it’s at now. And maybe you’ve never seen me on a snowboard so you just figure I don’t ride….
Maybe you were there when I was flying off rooftops, inventing new tricks and destroying the streets on my skateboard. And maybe you just see me as some fat lazy tranny rider that just likes cruisin’ around…
Maybe you were there when I was pushed down by society for what I looked like and believed in and spent every day hating the government and fighting for change. And maybe you think I just work for the City in my cushy office job and have an easy life…
Maybe you were there when I moved across the country away from everyone we knew with everything we owned and completely started over at age 19 to get rid of my depression and try to find happiness. And maybe you just thought I grew up in Surrey, was always happy and have lots of friends here…
Maybe you were there when we lived on Hastings Street, partied every day and survived off all the used skateboards and shoes that people would give us. And maybe you just think we always owned the house we live in and I always had all brand new equipment and owned a skateboard company…
Maybe you were there, maybe you weren’t.
My point is you only know someone from the time you know them, and not everyone has a biography written about them that explains everything that they’ve done to help change the world, or tell you about all the struggles they’ve faced and battles they’ve fought. And sometimes you might want to take the time to learn about people and what made them who they are today, and how they helped make you who you are too.
Don’t just know people from today, know them from yesterday.
Think about it, what do you really know about your friends, about your neighbours, about your own family members and what they did in this world in the past to make a difference?
Maybe it’s time to learn