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I really thought I was going to live and die in Tuskegee.
And I really believed that.
My brother died when he was 18.
I mean, what chance did I have?
I was six when my father left.
And it's mostly 'cause he was being hauled off to prison,
so we didn't have anywhere to live or stay.
Mom did whatever she could to get us food
or look for a job or help from anybody. We had the clothes
on our back, each other, and a car, pretty much.
Yeah, we were homeless.
We were homeless.
Eventually Mom got a job and a place for us to live.
When I was 14, we got a knock at the door.
When you got two white guys knocking on your door,
your friends are going to give you a hard time.
"Oh, you got the police coming over to your house?"
I'm like, "Nah, man, they're just missionaries."
"Oh, so you're going to hear lessons from them white boys?"
I really wasn't interested in what they had to say.
The missionaries finally said to me,
"If you want to know this is true, don't take our word for it.
Go to the source of all truth."
And that's what I did.
When I asked God if what they taught was true,
it brought feelings of love and peace that were missing from
from my life. I'd never felt that before.
Definitely not as powerful.
It just brought clarity to my life.
It helped me realize there is a plan for me,
that I was here for a reason, and that I was going somewhere
and that I had something to contribute.
That's what the feeling did for me.
My being away at school has made Mom very proud.
Her losing two sons and seeing the course my life is on,
that makes her so happy to know she won't lose another.
I kind of hustle people at school and be like—
they'll be all, "Oh, what is this black dude playing ping-pong?"
and then I like, dominate.
I can't dance, either.
So I'll go to a party and just stand there, like, look cool.
And they'll be like, "Oh, man, that guy's cool."
It's either that or "That guy's black. Get out."
I don't date very often.
I'm lacking the funds now, but if you want to go on a
date with Paris, 801-6— no, just kidding.
You can't have my numbers.
Just add me on Facebook.
When I tell you that this is truly life-changing—
you know, what I've experienced— I mean that.
I don't want to blame my circumstances for anything.
I like to think I'm better than my circumstances,
and my circumstances and my past made me stronger.
I hope I can use that to improve my life and also
to help those going through similar things.
I'm Paris Thomas.
I've been homeless.
I'm a high school dropout, but now I'm in school.
And I dominate ping-pong.
And I'm a Mormon.