Tupac Shakur: The Beauty and the Beast

On Sunday night I watched a documentary about Tupac Shakur called Thug Angel. Lina is not a big fan of documentaries...but I am, so I am packing them in while she is away. The Wifi download option from Netflix is sweet.

This documentary was a story of Tupac's life from start to finish, and a brutal end it was.

There was a a video of him in the film when he was 17. He was quite a sensitive, perceptive, socially-conscious, and intelligent kid. Someone who I'd relish talking with as a school counselor. In the video, he recounted how there was a girl that he really loved who broke up with him because he treated her too well. Apparently, he was "too nice" in her words. The prototypical girl who loved bad boys. Ah, the sins of Eve.

It seemed to be a turning point for Tupac because soon after, he embraced all things thug. He made millions. But that kid who wanted to be a force for good became an agent of evil. It was as if he said, "You want a bad-ass Nigga (he used Nigga to refer to himself over and over in the footage), you got it"...and he proceeded down the Ho and Bitch "use and be used" trap. He had a fondness for destruction in all facets. So he could rap...that hardly makes him a hero.

We all face turning points and momentous decisions. It just reminds me how important it is for kids to have people they can turn to before their hearts harden and turn cold. Tupac was no Thug Angel...in the end, he was just a Thug. And, that is pretty damn sad.

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