don't quit before your blessing.
You're not waiting on your blessing, you're living in it.
Don’t quit before the blessing.
About three weeks ago, Keith David accepted his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. At 70.
Keith David of Greenleaf. Keith David of The Princess and The Frog. His filmography, over 400 credits, is longggg (to say it lightly)—and he just received one of his industry’s most coveted awards.
I don’t know about y’all, but that’s fucking insane.
I’m not sure why this struck me so heavily, or why I am still thinking about it almost a month later. Maybe it’s because Keith David is legendary, so the fact that he just received this recognition is crazy. Even if you don’t know his name, you know his face, and definitely his voice.
Keith David is one of those Black male actors who I grew up on. Who didn’t always play the perfect man, but played a realistic man. He depicted men in our families, or the type of men we wanted in our families.
But maybe it’s fucking insane he had to wait that long because other—younger and whiter—celebrities like Miley Cyrus received her Walk of Fame before he did.
Y’all probably like, what does Miley have to do with this? Let me explain.
Don’t get me wrong, I like Miley. Similar to Keith David, I grew up on her. Like most young girls growing up in America in the 2000s, I watched every episode of Hannah Montana, plus The Climb and Best of Both Worlds concert. I witnessed Miley grow into the woman she is today.
And while she deserves her accolades—starting in the industry as a pre-teen and having over 20 years in the industry—she still received her star a month before he did… at 33.
Less than half the time it took Keith David.
Again, this is not to say Miley doesn’t deserve it. However, it does make me think about how easy it could’ve been for Keith David to give up decades ago. I wonder how he must’ve felt to see his peers, and those younger than him, receive (rightful) recognition for their hard work without getting the same acknowledgment of his own. Being forced to wait decades to finally get his blessing.
What I love, of course, is that his speech didn’t reek of resentment or anger over the wait. Instead, he started off by saying, “What you’re witnessing today is a man living his dream.” Even though it took 70 years for him to get there, his dream has finally arrived.
He continues expressing how growing up, he wanted to be a preacher, then a singer, a lawyer, and a bank president. But then he discovered he could be an actor and do all of those things.
He graduated from Juilliard in 1979, and has been acting ever since.
I think the reason his story resonates with me so much is because for the last few months, I’ve felt like quitting. There have been so many times in the last year when I’ve wanted to give up.
Moments (more than I’d like to admit) when I doubted myself and actually pondered with the possibility that I might just be ordinary. Maybe I’m not as special as I envision myself to be..
Maybe this is it. What if graduating from Georgetown University, and working at Glamour so early in my career was my peak?
Even though I’ve gotten recognition for my work through Glamour and Bet on Black, frankly, it wasn’t enough. Without hope, or those small things that remind you that you’re going in the right direction, things can look bleak.
But before I dove off the deep end, I tried to remember that God wouldn’t put that idea in your heart or in your mind if it wasn’t meant for you. He wouldn’t give me ideas of writing a book, or living in another country, or flying first class if it wasn’t possible.
So what’s my thought process now?
I haven’t quit. Frankly, I never did. I took a break—one that felt like eternity, but I’m back in my element with a renewed belief in God and in myself that everything truly does happen for a reason.
Going forward, I want to be more mindful and aware of what he is trying to tell me. To listen, observe, check in with Him, and trust Him.
I don’t wait to wait for my blessing. Instead, I want to recognize that I’m living in it, right now.
Read more from The Budding Season:
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When career success comes, you are not sure you want it anymore or its not as satisfying as when you were making the climb. You feel like you are meant for more but totally unsure of what that even is and yes, that questioning of, maybe I am meant for an ordinary life now OR maybe that second big wave is a long time from now. I was soooooo here.
Monique, “What you’re witnessing today is a man living his dream” is the line that gives Keith David’s moment its deeper weight here. You turn his Walk of Fame recognition into more than a Hollywood milestone; it becomes a testimony about delayed honor, Black excellence, endurance, and the danger of mistaking waiting for absence. The most meaningful turn is your own, moving from wondering whether you peaked to recognizing that the blessing is not only ahead of you, but already present beneath your feet. Grateful for the honesty, faith, and renewed courage in this reflection.