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No Better Time Than Right Now

  • Writer: Deric Hollings
    Deric Hollings
  • 11 hours ago
  • 5 min read

 

On his 2001 album Face Off, Georgia rapper Pastor Troy released a track entitled “Oh Father”. I appreciated the song for a number of reasons, one of which regarded my contrasting values pertaining to a barrio mindset along with my religious principles. According to one source:

  

His [Pastor Troy] father, who was of Haitian descent was a [hardworking] man who was a drill instructor turned pastor[, and] who tried to lead Troy down the path of the straight and narrow. Therefore, Troy grew up in the church, but was still tempted to indulge in acts that contradicted what [he] was taught there. Troy was exposed to many aspects of street life, the influence of which can be heard in the lyrics of his music.

 

Not unlike Pastor Troy, I walked with one foot in the streets and the other in the church. Another reason I liked “Oh Father” was for its existentialist message, one up with which I was raised. As an example, in the final verse of the song, Pastor Troy states:

 

I was writin’ this shit, I had to wipe my eyes

‘Cause this is chaos, they after us, we’ll never succeed

‘Cause we some ignorant ass niggas, but all we need is to see, I guarantee

If we stop competin’, get our children off these fuckin streets

And get them to readin’, now I’m just speakin’. Shit, who am I to tell anyone?

I’m telling ya, it ain’t nothin’ new up under the sun

You got your gun, well, fuck ya gun

If you gon’ run when they chase ya

Why don’t you do some of that crazy shit and threaten to face ‘em?

Now or later, we going to have to stand up and fight

We pay the taxes in this bitch, nigga, use your rights

And yeah, I know I ain’t right, but I’ll be damned if I’m wrong

They say two wrongs don’t make a right

But death i making me strong, and when I’m gone

I hope this song’ll rang in your heart

My nigga, ain’t no better time than right now to start

 

No longer associated with a street life perspective or religious dogma, I still appreciate the existential message of “Oh Father”. From the outlook of Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT), I view the track as a helpful reminder of unconditional life-acceptance (ULA).

 

At the risk of oversimplifying this concept, ULA posits that life is an imperfect process regarding which an individual has little control or influence. Rather than self-disturbing with irrational beliefs to the contrary, a person can simply tolerate and accept the unpleasantry of life.

 

When providing psychoeducational lessons on ULA, I encourage people to consider that there’s no better time than right now to start practicing this helpful outlook. Besides, we’re all going to eventually die. As long as you’re still imperfectly alive, you can start committing to REBT.

 

If you’re looking for a provider who tries to work to help you understand how thinking impacts physical, mental, emotional, and behavioral elements of your life, I invite you to reach out today by using the contact widget on my website.

 

As the world’s foremost hip hop-influenced REBT psychotherapist, I’m pleased to try to help people with an assortment of issues from anger (hostility, rage, and aggression) to relational issues, adjustment matters, trauma experience, justice involvement, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, anxiety and depression, and other mood or personality-related matters.

 

At Hollings Therapy, LLC, serving all of Texas, I aim to treat clients with dignity and respect while offering a multi-lensed approach to the practice of psychotherapy and life coaching. My mission includes: Prioritizing the cognitive and emotive needs of clients, an overall reduction in client suffering, and supporting sustainable growth for the clients I serve. Rather than simply trying to help you to feel better, I want to try to help you get better!

 

 

Deric Hollings, LPC, LCSW


Photo credit (edited), photo credit (edited), fair use

 

References:

 

AllAboutJazz. (n.d.). Pastor Troy. Retrieved from https://www.allaboutjazz.com/musicians/pastor-troy/

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Pastor Troy. (2018, July 29). Oh Father [Video]. YouTube. Retrieved from https://youtu.be/HobQIT0xXQY?si=dF3kUdTzIR9z8Q9l

Wikipedia. (n.d.). Face Off (Pastor Troy album). Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Face_Off_(Pastor_Troy_album)

Wikipedia. (n.d.). Pastor Troy. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pastor_Troy

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