Originally posted on Facebook on Friday, January 7, 2022.

In Week 1 of 52 Weeks of Gratefulness, I give thanks for Harold Guyton.

Mr. Guyton founded Mississippi Paving & Construction back in 1992. He was one of my earliest commercial clients dating back to 2003.

You'd never know Mr. Guyton was in the room unless he wanted you to know. He was kind, peaceable –meek, but not to be confused with weak, rather power under careful control. When Mr. Guyton did make his presence known, his speech was measured and direct. He'd state the objective, ask you if you could handle it and then trust you with the rest.

I remember, especially as a black business owner, how affirming his style of management felt, as though your ability to perform at a high level and deliver were obvious. Your excellence was assumed. It made you want to meet that bar and to not disappoint.

Mr. Guyton would continue to affirm you in his own quiet way: by consistently bringing you into his world and maintaining proximity to yours. In the featured photo, Mr. Guyton, pictured center, takes time away from running his multi-million dollar business to attend the ribbon cutting of my new office.

I doubt he said ten words that day but what I heard loud and clear was, "I believe in you and what you're doing. I'm here to support it." I'm grateful. #52WoG

I spoke with Mr. Guyton just last week, and recently learned that they laid him to rest yesterday. Life is a vapor. Don't waste it.

Please join me in prayer for Mr. Guyton's wife, family and loved ones.

Originally posted on Facebook on Wednesday, December 22, 2021.

In Week 52 of 52 Weeks of Gratefulness, I give thanks for my mother-in-love, Mary Jean Harris.

"I love you…" I fondly remember the way she would say that, especially when she was on the phone.

She sang it as much as she said it. The vowels would hang for a bit, almost as though they carried a deeper message about her love for you: the authenticity of her love (I-I-I), the intensity of her love (looove) and the certainty of her love (yoouu).

The sound of it was melodious, like a joyous line from an upbeat blues tune. Blues –the music of pain, perseverance and pursuit of brighter days. A fitting soundtrack to a beautiful life. If there was anyone to whom "Life For Me Ain't Been No Crystal Stair" could be applied, it was Mary Jean Harris -she had joy and found ways to share it, even through pain.

The life Mrs. Harris and her husband Willie Lee Harris built in the face of adversity places them among my heroes. In their day it was more important for a child to work than to go to school. But they dared to hope for and pursue a better life. With less than a high school education, they ventured out, overcoming the poverty they were born in to and eventually becoming home owners, all while providing for a large family of six children.

Mrs. Harris meticulously managed their modest earnings with the skill of a banker so that their children and even their grandchildren had not only what they needed but even some of what they wanted. But most impressively she built a house with "good bones". It was a home that kept a family together because, no matter how imperfect (as all families are), it was a home founded on love and built with intentionality. Even until the end, Mr. and Mrs. Harris had the advancement of their children in view and, seemingly against all odds, managed to leave property and money for them -money Melissa and I used to buy our first home.

This is a wonderful, hard-fought legacy and one that we cannot throw away. We owe them our best effort to advance and put the next generation in an even better position.

Thank you Mrs. Harris, for all the beautiful ways you said, "I love you."

We miss you, we love you and are determined to build on your memory. I'm grateful. #52WoG

Originally posted on Facebook on Saturday, December 18, 2021.

In Week 51 of 52 Weeks of Gratefulness, I give thanks for Jamie Jones.

It was a hot summer's day in June and my wife and boys were sitting on the grass just outside George M. Bryan Airport. They were there for two reasons: because our youngest son, Roman, likes to go there just to watch planes take off and land and because they were recording a video for me for Father's Day.

As they were recording, a man began to walk from the hangers in their direction. Thinking that they were about to be told that they could not be there, my family began to get up and leave. But, the man introduced himself and asked if they were there to see the planes. As they talked, they shared how Roman has expressed a love of airplanes even before he could really talk. The man said, "I think I know of something he might be interested in. There's a group meeting in the hanger right now that I think he should meet. Let me introduce you."

That was about 5 years ago, the man was Jamie Jones and that group that was meeting was the MSU Soaring Club. Roman began flying with them at the very next meeting and loved it. He has been flying under the instruction of Dr. George Bennet ever since and is on course to receive his license this upcoming year.

It is rare to find that thing you know without question you were built to do. Because Mr. Jones went out of his way to show kindness to a stranger, he helped my son to find his thing. For that, I am in his debt and he will be forever enshrined in Luckett family history. I'm grateful. #52WoG

Originally posted on Facebook on Sunday, December 5, 2021.

In Week 49 of 52 Weeks of Gratefulness, I give thanks for Mr. Oda Dakhlalla.

When I got to college, I thought Algebra would be like what I took in high school, but they put "College" at the front of College Algebra for a reason. When I needed help, Mr. Oda Dakhlalla was my tutor. Mr. Oda not only helped me to learn the formulas I needed to solve problems but he helped me understand the underlying logic of mathematical concepts. This helped me to even approach problems that I may not have known the necessary formulas to solve. He was brilliant. He went on to help me with a number of my classes like Stats II.

That was more than 20 years ago.

Mr. Oda has since prepped my eldest son for the ACT, who is now a sophomore in college and is currently working with my youngest son on his ACT and SAT.

But most notably, Mr. Oda over the years has become more than a tutor but a friend. On our most recent visit, he insisted to cook for us. We not only have occasion to regularly share a lesson but life. I'm grateful. #52WoG

*If you or your student needs a tutor in math, stats, physics or chemistry, I highly recommend Mr. Dakhlalla. He's effective and affordable (I was able to afford his services in college). His phone number is 662-722-0020.