Post by Derek Brooks on Jan 23, 2017 5:43:50 GMT
There comes a time in every man’s life when he has to look himself in the mirror.
The scene slowly fades in, Derek is sitting in a chair and slowly lifts his head up. He stares directly into the eyes of his reflection and continues on.
He has to think of everything he’s said...everything he’s done...and at times either smile, or re-evaluate what it is that’s important to him.
The camera wraps around the mountain of a man. The man behind the lens, hunching down, getting eye level with Derek who certainly isn’t his normal self. The high energy, fast pace is non-existent and the look on his face tells a story of sorrow.)
That time...for the man before you, the one who walks around calling himself “Greatness” but proves himself to be nothing more than empty hype...was after I faced Alex Jones.
He sits up in the chair, nothing but a blank stare shooting from his eyes into the emptiness in front of him.
It was the moment he pinned me to the mat for a three count, and as he celebrated, I stared up at the lights of the arena, and I asked myself…
His head tilts back to the camera, a quizzical look on his face.
What the hell am I doing?
He sits forward in the chair, moving to the edge of his seat.
Week in and week out, I jump up and down in front of the camera for the amusement of the people, and don’t get me wrong in the slightest of bits, I love every second of it; but the question still needed to be asked...what am I doing?
He stands up and throws his hands in the air.
Whatever “IT” is...it’s not working. Greatness is supposed to mean going out to that ring week in and week out, beating the crap out of, and showing the world you're better than the chump who gets in the ring opposite you.
Sure I beat Jayson Matthews a couple of weeks ago, but when it came down to it, and I had a huge opportunity right there in front of me…
He smacks his hands in front of him, the loud “thwap” signifying the bluntness of the opportunity lying before him.
He then stares at the open palm in front of him.
I take that opportunity…
He blows into his hand as if blowing dirt or dust into the air.
...and I let it go to waste…
He walks back around the chair and has a seat.
So how the hell can a man call himself Greatness despite failing to amount to anything? I thought I came in here with the right mindset. I had the look, the athleticism, the attitude...it was all there, all I had to do was kick the door down.
He throws his hand out to reference his opponent.
Hell, look at the dude I’m facing this week. Dorian Hawkhurst.
He starts applauding slowly.
Trust me, this isn’t sarcastic, I mean every single clap because the dude deserves praise. He walks in, first match and smacks the shit out of Alex Jones. He beat him to the point where it made me make a huge mistake when I myself faced Alex in the ring. It made me question his desire to even be in that ring anymore.
He chuckles.
Big fucking mistake. Now I’m the one questioning what went wrong and if this is even for me.
A long, drawn out sigh emanates from his massive chest as he seems to doubt himself even further.
So here’s what’s going to happen new guy. You made an impression and that’s great. You beat a former Imperial Champion, and now you look to ascend to bigger and better things, and hell, win, lose, or draw, I’m not going to stop you completely from ascending that ladder. You have all the makings of a future star.
As do I.
He stands up and puts his hands on his chest.
The new attitude has come and it’s taking over not only my mind but my body and my soul, and with it, this sum bitch before you is going to show the world what he’s truly made of. No longer is Derek Brooks referring to himself as Greatness Personified. It may have been true on the Gridiron, but I’m telling you now I have a hell of a lot to learn here in the IWF.
So while I’m no longer Derek Brooks, “Greatness Personified”; I damn sure AM Derek Brooks “Destined for Greatness”.
He throws his hands in the air, spelling out like a grand marquee the next words to come from his lips.
William Fucking Shakespeare said: “Be not afraid of greatness. Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and others have greatness thrust upon them.”
He slams his hands into his chest.
And the man before you has damn sure had greatness thrust upon him. The difference between then and now is belief, not just talk. The difference isn’t in bravado or attitude, but in the actions of a man who is now possessed, not with the cockiness of a king, but the humbleness of the common everyday man. The man before you, Derek Brooks knows that Greatness is his destiny, he knows that’s the end goal, and with the hunger of a homeless man begging for change, and the ferocity of a lion leaping on a gazelle, GOD DAMN IT, I’m walking into Monday Night Sacrifice and taking on the Demon of Sobriety. I’m showing him that I’m faster than him, stronger than him, and have the willpower ten times that of him to not only step in that ring and show the world I belong, but show them that I am indeed the superior competitor in that ring.
A new Derek Brooks is entering the arena, and when he does...all I can say to you in the stands, and that big sum bitch across from me is…”Are you ready?”
Derek slaps the chair away and starts walking off with a smile on his face, his voice echoing in the room before he leaves, though he is off camera…
HELL YEAH BITCH!
As the door slams, so goes your feed into the darkness.
Hello...Mom.
After my meeting with Rick, I knew it was best to not only flee New York, but get off the East Coast all together. I packed my belongings, jumped in a U-Haul, and towed my shit, and my crappy inconspicuous car across the country to Rosamond, California...the Mojave Desert. I pulled up around a cul-de-sac and stopped. Looking through the sunglasses and from beneath the brim of my Dodgers Baseball cap, I sat back in the seat and simply stared at the dry dirt surrounding the area. There were a set of houses, and my mother’s house was the last on the hill, the only one that belonged to the cul-de-sac. There was a dirt road that outdoor adventurers took into the rocky mountainous terrain, and a giant water tower right next to her house.
I jumped out, my boots hitting the asphalt beneath me as I stared back from which I had come, the entire Antelope Valley could be seen from where I was. Off in the distance, you could see the mountain range, on the other side, the busy life of Los Angeles, California. It’s where I really wanted to go, but in the end, I knew I’d have to stay out in the sticks to avoid any sort of discovery.
Shane, the criminal I had hurled through a window a few weeks prior had a far reach and connections worldwide. I wasn’t about to screw up and get caught putting more than myself in danger. I took a deep breath… ”Home.”
I walked around the trailer and up the driveway to the walkway and up to the front door. It had been quite some time since I saw the woman. She was separated from my father for sometime, but they both headed out west and decided to try and make another go at it while I was playing football. Unfortunately, Dad passed away, perhaps leading me to this life of crime and no good, but I hadn’t been around to console her. I was too wrapped up in myself. I know that now, and it tore a hole in my heart the side of the Grand Canyon. Alas, the past was the past and I leaned in, knocking on the door a total of three times. I took a deep breath and waited as I heard the lock being unturned. The door opened as I took another breath and there she stood with her mouth wide open. A smile crossed my face. ”Hello...mom.”
”Oh...my...God…” She stepped outside and looked me up and down. A smile crossed her face as she stepped in to hug me. ”My baby’s back home! I can’t believe it! Oh my gosh this is just so wonderful.”
I returned the hug as any good son would. I greeted her enthusiasm with some spirit of my own. ”That’s right mom, I’m home. I’m here to spend sometime with the greatest cook in this damn country, and the best mother a boy could have.”
I could feel her pull away and look past me to the truck in the street. ”Baby, is that a moving truck?”
I turned and smiled again. ”Yeah! I came out west to live here. The city life of New York was just too much to cover for. You know, with the busted up knee, and not being able to play football, I just thought it better to maybe be out here in the good old desert, with family.”
She looked back at me, and I knew she was trying to read my face. She put her hands on her hips...I had been found out. ”Boy do you think me stupid?”
I shook my head.
”Then why don’t you tell me the real reason you’re out here?”
I let out a giant sigh.
”Okay, but you better sit down.”
The two of us walked over to the bench on her patio and had a seat. ”So I told you I was working as a bouncer for a club right?”
She shook her head. ”Uh-huh.”
I rubbed my hand over my head. I felt like I was being interrogated for murder and the cops had me dead to rights. ”Well, it was more than that. I was a heavy for one of the crime bosses in New York, his name was Shane. Things were fine. I’d rough up some guys, collect some money, and catch a nice sum of cash in the process.”
The woman literally smacked me in the back of the head. ”I thought I taught you better than that!?”
”You did. I fell on hard times, and had nothing else I could do. The man offered me a job and I accepted...that’s on me. Anyway, the reason I’m out here, the last job he had me do was going after one of my old college buddies, and a guy I was going to play pro with Bret. I chose not to, I told him I wanted out. He wouldn’t let me out...so I fought my way out.
That...got me in a little trouble.”
She put her hand on my shoulder. ”Baby, you can tell your momma...it’s okay.”
I sighed again. ”This man has a lot of connections mom. He hired someone to abduct me, and possibly worse. Seeing as how he’s on the East Coast, I thought if I moved out here, I could at least buy some time and come up with some sort of plan.” I looked her in the eye. ”So what do you say Mom? Can your boy come home and figure some things out?”
She smiled and wrapped her arm around me, pulling me in close. ”Of course you can baby...of course you can. Momma would never turn her boy away...no sir.”
”Thanks Mom.”
The scene fades as I hug her back.
The scene slowly fades in, Derek is sitting in a chair and slowly lifts his head up. He stares directly into the eyes of his reflection and continues on.
He has to think of everything he’s said...everything he’s done...and at times either smile, or re-evaluate what it is that’s important to him.
The camera wraps around the mountain of a man. The man behind the lens, hunching down, getting eye level with Derek who certainly isn’t his normal self. The high energy, fast pace is non-existent and the look on his face tells a story of sorrow.)
That time...for the man before you, the one who walks around calling himself “Greatness” but proves himself to be nothing more than empty hype...was after I faced Alex Jones.
He sits up in the chair, nothing but a blank stare shooting from his eyes into the emptiness in front of him.
It was the moment he pinned me to the mat for a three count, and as he celebrated, I stared up at the lights of the arena, and I asked myself…
His head tilts back to the camera, a quizzical look on his face.
What the hell am I doing?
He sits forward in the chair, moving to the edge of his seat.
Week in and week out, I jump up and down in front of the camera for the amusement of the people, and don’t get me wrong in the slightest of bits, I love every second of it; but the question still needed to be asked...what am I doing?
He stands up and throws his hands in the air.
Whatever “IT” is...it’s not working. Greatness is supposed to mean going out to that ring week in and week out, beating the crap out of, and showing the world you're better than the chump who gets in the ring opposite you.
Sure I beat Jayson Matthews a couple of weeks ago, but when it came down to it, and I had a huge opportunity right there in front of me…
He smacks his hands in front of him, the loud “thwap” signifying the bluntness of the opportunity lying before him.
He then stares at the open palm in front of him.
I take that opportunity…
He blows into his hand as if blowing dirt or dust into the air.
...and I let it go to waste…
He walks back around the chair and has a seat.
So how the hell can a man call himself Greatness despite failing to amount to anything? I thought I came in here with the right mindset. I had the look, the athleticism, the attitude...it was all there, all I had to do was kick the door down.
He throws his hand out to reference his opponent.
Hell, look at the dude I’m facing this week. Dorian Hawkhurst.
He starts applauding slowly.
Trust me, this isn’t sarcastic, I mean every single clap because the dude deserves praise. He walks in, first match and smacks the shit out of Alex Jones. He beat him to the point where it made me make a huge mistake when I myself faced Alex in the ring. It made me question his desire to even be in that ring anymore.
He chuckles.
Big fucking mistake. Now I’m the one questioning what went wrong and if this is even for me.
A long, drawn out sigh emanates from his massive chest as he seems to doubt himself even further.
So here’s what’s going to happen new guy. You made an impression and that’s great. You beat a former Imperial Champion, and now you look to ascend to bigger and better things, and hell, win, lose, or draw, I’m not going to stop you completely from ascending that ladder. You have all the makings of a future star.
As do I.
He stands up and puts his hands on his chest.
The new attitude has come and it’s taking over not only my mind but my body and my soul, and with it, this sum bitch before you is going to show the world what he’s truly made of. No longer is Derek Brooks referring to himself as Greatness Personified. It may have been true on the Gridiron, but I’m telling you now I have a hell of a lot to learn here in the IWF.
So while I’m no longer Derek Brooks, “Greatness Personified”; I damn sure AM Derek Brooks “Destined for Greatness”.
He throws his hands in the air, spelling out like a grand marquee the next words to come from his lips.
William Fucking Shakespeare said: “Be not afraid of greatness. Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and others have greatness thrust upon them.”
He slams his hands into his chest.
And the man before you has damn sure had greatness thrust upon him. The difference between then and now is belief, not just talk. The difference isn’t in bravado or attitude, but in the actions of a man who is now possessed, not with the cockiness of a king, but the humbleness of the common everyday man. The man before you, Derek Brooks knows that Greatness is his destiny, he knows that’s the end goal, and with the hunger of a homeless man begging for change, and the ferocity of a lion leaping on a gazelle, GOD DAMN IT, I’m walking into Monday Night Sacrifice and taking on the Demon of Sobriety. I’m showing him that I’m faster than him, stronger than him, and have the willpower ten times that of him to not only step in that ring and show the world I belong, but show them that I am indeed the superior competitor in that ring.
A new Derek Brooks is entering the arena, and when he does...all I can say to you in the stands, and that big sum bitch across from me is…”Are you ready?”
Derek slaps the chair away and starts walking off with a smile on his face, his voice echoing in the room before he leaves, though he is off camera…
HELL YEAH BITCH!
As the door slams, so goes your feed into the darkness.
Hello...Mom.
After my meeting with Rick, I knew it was best to not only flee New York, but get off the East Coast all together. I packed my belongings, jumped in a U-Haul, and towed my shit, and my crappy inconspicuous car across the country to Rosamond, California...the Mojave Desert. I pulled up around a cul-de-sac and stopped. Looking through the sunglasses and from beneath the brim of my Dodgers Baseball cap, I sat back in the seat and simply stared at the dry dirt surrounding the area. There were a set of houses, and my mother’s house was the last on the hill, the only one that belonged to the cul-de-sac. There was a dirt road that outdoor adventurers took into the rocky mountainous terrain, and a giant water tower right next to her house.
I jumped out, my boots hitting the asphalt beneath me as I stared back from which I had come, the entire Antelope Valley could be seen from where I was. Off in the distance, you could see the mountain range, on the other side, the busy life of Los Angeles, California. It’s where I really wanted to go, but in the end, I knew I’d have to stay out in the sticks to avoid any sort of discovery.
Shane, the criminal I had hurled through a window a few weeks prior had a far reach and connections worldwide. I wasn’t about to screw up and get caught putting more than myself in danger. I took a deep breath… ”Home.”
I walked around the trailer and up the driveway to the walkway and up to the front door. It had been quite some time since I saw the woman. She was separated from my father for sometime, but they both headed out west and decided to try and make another go at it while I was playing football. Unfortunately, Dad passed away, perhaps leading me to this life of crime and no good, but I hadn’t been around to console her. I was too wrapped up in myself. I know that now, and it tore a hole in my heart the side of the Grand Canyon. Alas, the past was the past and I leaned in, knocking on the door a total of three times. I took a deep breath and waited as I heard the lock being unturned. The door opened as I took another breath and there she stood with her mouth wide open. A smile crossed my face. ”Hello...mom.”
”Oh...my...God…” She stepped outside and looked me up and down. A smile crossed her face as she stepped in to hug me. ”My baby’s back home! I can’t believe it! Oh my gosh this is just so wonderful.”
I returned the hug as any good son would. I greeted her enthusiasm with some spirit of my own. ”That’s right mom, I’m home. I’m here to spend sometime with the greatest cook in this damn country, and the best mother a boy could have.”
I could feel her pull away and look past me to the truck in the street. ”Baby, is that a moving truck?”
I turned and smiled again. ”Yeah! I came out west to live here. The city life of New York was just too much to cover for. You know, with the busted up knee, and not being able to play football, I just thought it better to maybe be out here in the good old desert, with family.”
She looked back at me, and I knew she was trying to read my face. She put her hands on her hips...I had been found out. ”Boy do you think me stupid?”
I shook my head.
”Then why don’t you tell me the real reason you’re out here?”
I let out a giant sigh.
”Okay, but you better sit down.”
The two of us walked over to the bench on her patio and had a seat. ”So I told you I was working as a bouncer for a club right?”
She shook her head. ”Uh-huh.”
I rubbed my hand over my head. I felt like I was being interrogated for murder and the cops had me dead to rights. ”Well, it was more than that. I was a heavy for one of the crime bosses in New York, his name was Shane. Things were fine. I’d rough up some guys, collect some money, and catch a nice sum of cash in the process.”
The woman literally smacked me in the back of the head. ”I thought I taught you better than that!?”
”You did. I fell on hard times, and had nothing else I could do. The man offered me a job and I accepted...that’s on me. Anyway, the reason I’m out here, the last job he had me do was going after one of my old college buddies, and a guy I was going to play pro with Bret. I chose not to, I told him I wanted out. He wouldn’t let me out...so I fought my way out.
That...got me in a little trouble.”
She put her hand on my shoulder. ”Baby, you can tell your momma...it’s okay.”
I sighed again. ”This man has a lot of connections mom. He hired someone to abduct me, and possibly worse. Seeing as how he’s on the East Coast, I thought if I moved out here, I could at least buy some time and come up with some sort of plan.” I looked her in the eye. ”So what do you say Mom? Can your boy come home and figure some things out?”
She smiled and wrapped her arm around me, pulling me in close. ”Of course you can baby...of course you can. Momma would never turn her boy away...no sir.”
”Thanks Mom.”
The scene fades as I hug her back.
Well howdy there pardner.