Dust Your Feet Off, Homie

If anyone will not welcome you or listen to your words, shake off the dust from your feet as you leave that house or town. ~ Matthew 10:14, NRSV

I’m going to use this passage out of context. Not because I generally play fast and loose with Scripture, but because I feel it’s well within my right as a creative person to do so.

I’ll be perfectly honest with y’all: Being a content creator can be quite tiring. Not because I don’t absolutely love creating blogs, podcasts, books, and music, but for two very distinct reasons: 1) I create everything on top of 3 “regular” jobs and 2) Some people literally hate and obsess over me.

Due to this, the only thing I can really do is create little mantras in order to keep pressing on. In spite of my name being dragged through the mud, I just keep scraping the dirt off the soles of my worn-out Chucks and muttering things like “Dust your feet off, homie.”

That’s literally all I can do, even when so-called colleagues feel the need to disclose private information about me on their platform, for example. Dust your feet off, homie. No actions can be taken. Nothing can be done except to keep pressing on, not allowing the jealous attention seekers to get the best of me.

Still, though, it does wear me down. But only for a moment. Because here’s something I’ve learned over the years: Your true friends will always have your back. And I’ve got some damn-good friends.

Keith Giles, whom I’ve collaborated with on countless occasions.

Derrick Day, the author of the foreword for The Bonfire Sessions and cohost of the Heretic Happy Hour.

Katy Valentine, fellow cohost of the aforementioned podcast.

Rafael Polendo, publisher and producer extraordinaire.

Michelle Collins, coauthor of the forthcoming book, Learning to Float.

Local friends like Erin O’Neil, Carlos Sawyer, and Joel Weaver.

And of course, my BFF, Michael Machuga.

Without folks like these, having to deal with people who spend years throwing shade my way would make creating content not worth it. But because of my friends, it is so worth it. In fact, when you have friends who have your back in spite of the worst, that’s all you can ask for. Well, that and health, a roof over your head, affordable healthcare, and good bud.

So today, remember your friends. Reach out to them and thank them for everything they do for you. Surprise them with a bouquet of flowers, or a dime sack (do those still exist?). Tell them you love them. Men, you can do this, too.

And if you have people in your life who feel the need to drag your name through the mud, thus proving you were correct in stepping away years ago, just dust your feet off. They will eventually move onto something else. Hopefully. Maybe. Fingers and toes crossed.

If you wanna get to know me better, please follow me on social media. I’m pretty active on all platforms:

Also, if you’ve been digging my work on here, and want to see me be able to continue writing as close to full-time as humanly possible, please take a look at my Patreon page at www.patreon.com/mjdistefano. Even $1 a month helps bigly!!!