TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2015
"'Doug, I'm gonna bring the students in.' says the school principal from the echoing corridor. The curtain is pulled back, the learning tank gymnasium is now filled. I wait backstage while my ten minute intro video plays upon the screen. I have a serene moment while hearing the collage of sounds that are reflective of the last ten years of my skating career. It's a complete moment I can jump out of myself and reflect on how far I've come and what it took to be standing in this precise moment of time. The absolute euphoria of being in the here and now. In reflective land the video has ended and the principal is reading my credits and I hear, 'Please give a warm welcome to Doug Brown!" The curtain is pulled open. I hear a sea of applause. As I'm walking on the stage each step puts me further in my zone. I'm on. My single mission is to connect and reach every single person. This is it, my Skate Straight presentation, which is one of the most important things I've developed out of my skateboarding. This is where I found my voice, my deeper purpose. Years of being on stage in theater. Years of being in bands and producing my own music. Years of teaching guitar and becoming the mentor. And now years of skateboarding and speaking. I've now spoken to thousands and thousands of kids across the nation." p.92-93, Looking Glass Self: Hope, Optimism and the Journey Within; Doug Brown