Obscurity was good for me

Twenty-five years ago, I wrote my first serious article. It was for my school newspaper (DePauw University). Originally, I wanted to be a regular columnist. I envisioned a weekly column entitled: "The Report from Washington." However, I was only able to convince the newspaper editor to let me write two articles.

Then, for the next 25 years, I labored in the abyss of obscurity.

Virtually no one knew about me, my writings or even seemingly cared what I had to say, although I believed that I had a unique voice.

For 25 years, I knew that I had ideas that would resonate with my people, with Americans, yet I remained in the abyss of obscurity.

A few years after the bitterness wore off, after my pity party, after I dried my eyes ... I girded my loins like a man.

I grew comfortable there (in the abyss of obscurity). It was all good for me. There are no distractions there. It drove me to my knees in prayer and made me become a man of patience, of contemplation, of thought ... of gravitas.

I began to look around to see whom I admired, whom I could learn from, under whom I could be a prot?g?. There was no one but birds, ants, squirrels, rocks, trees, flowers and on rare occasion, a few rabbits. ... Oh, yes! And there was Beethoven. I had my audience!

I started reading, writing, editing and reading, writing, editing and reading, writing, editing. Then I started reading what I had written to God, to the birds, the squirrels, the ants, rocks, trees and sometimes, the rabbits.

They always listened to my crazy rantings and offered encouragement.

Later, there was the legendary historian, musicologist, author of over 35 books, piano virtuoso and founder of the Michigan Music Research Center, Arthur R. LaBrew, who is a genius and, like me, was ignored for 50 years by the academy, the media and his own people, yet he can trace his piano lineage back to Beethoven!

Twenty years ago, he took me under his wing and got me into Harvard. The college students always heard my voice and invited me to give my first lecture – it was on Beethoven.

Later, there were many, many letters and e-mails from my two new friends – Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas and Chief Judge Richard A. Posner, of the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals (Chicago), urging me Onward Ever! Backwards, Never!

A few years later, there were my friends, the Jews – Elie Wiesel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Yad Vashem Library, The Simon Wiesenthal Center, The U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum. Afterward, the Queen of England, Elizabeth II, the dean of Yale Law School, Guido Calebresi, Poet Laureate Dr. Maya Angelou, then Justices' Ginsburg, Breyer, Souter and O'Connor, sent me letters in essence saying that I wasn't crazy and to keep on writing ... and I did.

To this day, my people, my family, my friends, my prot?g?s, my neighbors, my pastors at 10 churches I attended in four states and virtually all of their congregants treated me as a leper. Yet, in silence, I embraced their disregard and wore it as a badge of honor.

Ironically, societies' forgotten people – the maids, the janitors, the security guards, the secretaries, the legal assistants, the fax girls, the copy machine operators, the messenger boys, the waiters, the cashiers at the deli ... the bums on the street, all bought (or at least read) my books and treated me as a great scholar with much love and honor. They were my new audience, and I vindicated their cause in my books.

Then there was Michigan defense attorney Che Ali Karega and the ministry of Bishop T.D. Jakes, and my thinking was forever transformed!

To the academy, I didn't have a Ph.D. To the law academy, I was an oddity that couldn't pass the bar exam. One mocked me; the other ignored me. I wore their maledictions as a crown of thorns.

Ten years ago, Joseph Farah, founder of WorldNetDaily, had the vision, courage and intellect to start WND, and it has flourished exceedingly and abundantly. For 10 years, it was my daily bread as I wrote books nobody purchased or read.

A few weeks ago, at this most commendable milestone of WorldNetDaily's 10th anniversary, I received a note from Joseph Farah asking me to join the publication as a commentator. I did not give him time to change his mind, and I promptly accepted.

Joseph recently told me that for years he had watched my career grow from afar and had admired my work. (His unwritten words were that he knew that I had potential, but it wasn't time yet). My weekly column is called: "The Report from Washington" – the same title God put in my heart exactly 25 years ago!

Exceeding gratitude to you, Joseph Farah, and to all the editors, writers and staff at WorldNetDaily for being a clarion voice of Veritas (Truth) when all other voices have been silenced or compromised.

Help WND celebrate its 10th anniversary by joining Joseph Farah and other loyal readers on a seven-day Caribbean cruise!