Darryl S. Duke My Book My Blog
We don’t have to be anonymous to find meaning and greater happiness in life.
Listening to The Greatest Love of All. A song about Muhammad Ali, my teenage role model and the reason I started boxing at 15, saddened me this morning. We could certainly use more people like him in this world today. Even though he is no longer here, I am still inspired by him to do … Read more
Today marks 5 years since Muhammad Ali passed away. The first time I met him was at his training camp in Deer Lake, Pennsylvania. It was the summer of 1975 and I was just 15 years old. He wasn’t happy about a Bruce Lee T-shirt that I had on and neither was I. It was … Read more
At 60 years old; thinking about the fears I’ve had. Hardships I’ve faced. And any trials and tribulations I’ve gone through as a somewhat privileged white middle-class citizen, I cannot think of anything that stands out as life-changing, other than when I finally stopped drinking. Now I did experience fears and insecurities throughout my life … Read more
From Chapter three of my book. This was a few years before I started drinking on a regular basis and the beginnings of a false sense of ego that I used to feel better about myself for many more years to come. “I believe that having role models when we’re young can be of great … Read more
June 3rd will be forever bittersweet for me. My daughter was born on this date, which makes me happy. But my adolescent idol, Muhammad Ali, has passed away. He meant so much to so many that I know I am not alone in the deep sadness I feel. I also know I cannot claim to … Read more
I was a skinny and very insecure teenager and, as a result, I needed to be someone I wasn’t. Someone great. I even started boxing at fifteen because of this and tried to act like Muhammad Ali. With dedication and a boxing style, I copied from Ali. I was able to win an amateur Golden … Read more