Good News-Bad News
By Eddie Griffin
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
After the polls closed on yesterday, I went out to celebratethe watch of the returns with the jubilant NicoleCollier group. A small group of about 75 people were crammed into therestaurant, awaiting the lady of the hour. They were all bone tired exhausted,as they trickled in from the field, looking for food, refreshments, and victory.There were children present to witness this historic day.
I, too, was tired, exhausted to the brink from supportingand promoting other hopeful candidates in other races. But of this one watchparty was a must attend for me, because the Collier candidacy looked like ourbest shot, for a diamond-in-the-rough underdog to take the lion’s share my hometurf, District 95.
I listened to these courageous folks tell their storiesabout their work in the field, going door to door, pressing the flesh, andtalking to voters. The joke around the room was about Nicole’s worn-out pink sneakers.I felt refreshed to be among earthly people who put their heart and soul intothis campaign.
Entrance the lady of the hour, and after introductions, wewere off and running, watching the results on multiple TV screens, cheering thetally, round by round.
Eddie Griffin was wired and connected to instant feeds anddirect communications in the field. But watching the numbers come in was likewatching paint dry.
GOOD NEWS – BAD NEWS
Nicole Collier was up and at holding at 48%. Our strategywas to attain a 50.1% majority, and avoid a runoff. GOOD NEWS, nevertheless, weare in the Runoffs, with a 10% lead.
BAD NEWS: Kyev Tatum and his group of prayerwarriors, not only fell short of glory, but crashed in 10th place inhis race for U.S. District 33. Herewas another campaign that Eddie Griffin had poured heart and mind into. My protégé,who lovingly calls himself my “hardheaded” student, acted just as hardheadedstudent, ignoring the Stop Signs and failing to Slow Down while speedingthrough a Political Zone, with Eddie Griffin as a passenger.
Every mistake a man can make can be overcome, except the onethat is fatal. A few days before the election, I described to Tatum avisualization of his fatal mistake in the race. His premature boasting got him shotdown like a soldier sticking his head up out of the foxhole. Covertly some Democratic Partyelite sabotaged his boasting by undoing his plan.
“They got me, Brother Eddie,” he lamented over the phone. “Theyknocked the wind out of me.” It took him by surprise like a man mortallywounded and he sounded like a man who had lost his self-confidence.
It was at that point that I saw a defeated man.
THE LAST MISTAKE-WORSE THAN THE FIRST
Eddie Griffin cannot fix a man’s pride and boastfulness.Humility is the best teacher, and Brother Tatum is now learning plenty of thatwith only 200 votes to show for his campaign effort. The good part, however,was that, for once, “the least, last, lost, and left out”, had a voice and alegitimate shot at a congressional seat at the table.
But after the public embarrassment of a refuted claim ofsupport, Tatum called up his “prayer warriors” to come to the rescue and praythemselves to victory.
God is above politics, I wrote, and warned Tatum that byinvoking the name of God and putting Him to the test, that he (Tatum) must provethe power of his prayers by winning the election or risk proving the false hopeof his prayers.
The bible declares that God hears and answers the prayers ofthe righteous, but God disdains the prayers of those conceited in their faith. “Prayerwarriors”, what are they? How can they approach the throne of grace except throughhumility and total submission to His Will?
No, prayer is not answered on the basis of man’s volition or fervency.Thus, Brother Tatum could not pray his way out of his mistakes and on to victory,no more than the “prayer warriors” in the time of the prophet Elijah.
It troubles Eddie Griffin to see people trying to get God todo their will, instead of God’s will. The race is given neither to the swift,nor the battle to the strong.
IN THE MEANTIME
I bypassed the Tatum Watch Party to go and be with a winner,Nicole Collier. Although I felt spent and would have preferred some much-neededsleep after the polls closed, I just didn’t want to spend the night alone, athome, watching the election results. And, I had a number of invitations toWatch Parties from various candidates that I supported. I wanted to be happy,and to be around cheerful people, and not to be depressed by the Tatum funeral Party.
When I first met Nicole Collier, I asked if she could “takea punch”. I had meant if she could take a knockdown in the political arena. Shetook the challenge at physical face value, balled up her fist, and declaredthat she will hit back. That’s when I knew that we had a winner who couldchampion our district.
But on this watch night she was on pins and needles as thenumbers came in. The old jokes were for laughter to break the tensions of thenight.
I told her a story about another candidate who, severalyears ago, held a lead that kept declining as the night wore on, knowing that thiswas why Nicole was so uptight. At any rate, as the story went, as thisparticular candidate’s lead began to slip, she began to drink. As the marginlead continued to fall, the drunker the candidate got. Finally, when theydeclared her the victor, by the slimmest margins, her hair was skewed in ahundred different directions and she could barely walk straight.
Nicole whispered, “I’m glad you told me that story, becauseI was just thinking about getting me a drink.”
Then she paused and looked at me, and asked, “Can I have adrink?”
I responded, “No, not now.” Remember the previousexperience, I said, “You may have to make a victory speech.” And, when Ifinally left just after midnight, I left a jubilant Nicole, sane and sober.
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