#HBD: RE III

Name: R@yfül "Cüzz0" Edm0ñd III

Birthdate: 11/26/1964

Location: Worldwide via Washington, DC ✈️

Why they feelin' The Sting today:

A qu33r p!mp with a flair for the dramatic, my cousin-dad R@y was a well-known hustler in the neighborhood our family is from in DC.

His personality was larger than life, though Cüzz0 himself had a rather unassuming presence.

With a simple gold chain adorning his neck & the latest A!r J0rd@n sneakers on his feet, Cüz could've been just about any young Black man in DC at the time.

The general consensus among those on DC’s social scene back then was that it wasn’t really a party until Cüzz0 & his entourage—a bevy of beautiful women he called his “employees”—showed up.

So imagine everyone’s shock & grief when we learned Cüz was—allegedly—dying from AIDS 😔

Cüzz0 specifically requested my presence—& my presence *alone*—during his final earthly moments, as he lay hospitalized with the virus slowly consuming him.

Cüz always did have a wicked sense of humor; being the precocious (approximately) 11-year-old I was at the time, I checked Cüzz0's pulse to see if he might be faking it.

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Cüz *definitely* wasn’t playing, my babies... ☠️

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However, several mystics that were consulted regarding the matter said the simple act of my checking Cüzz0's pulse via his wrist triggered a spiritual transference whereby Cüz’s divine essence suddenly inhabited *my own* mind & body 😳 #Uh-Oh

In other words, I’ve lived my entire life since my cousin’s (*alleged*) passing with his thoughts, musings, & distinct vocabulary composing my innermost personal monologue 😇

Naturally, my grandma/great-aunt (🧬🙄😒) Aunt C0nn!e & ‘nem was shocked 😨

It takes a lot to leave a b!tch like Aunt C0nn!e speechless—& here, in d3@th, Cüzz0 had done it again.

If she was ambivalent about my existence as one of her many relatives *before* Cüz’s passing—& she definitely was, y'all—C0nn!e felt the complete opposite *after* that event.

Suddenly, Aunt C0nn!e saw fit to have me right under her wing: Following her around, explaining her wild a$$ behavior to people, posting bail money—or arranging to have it posted—whenever she got locked up in the clink (which was quite often), etc. etc. 😱 #YIKES 

C0nn!e was basically trying to force Cüzz0’s life experiences onto me, a little girl, in hopes of recreating his *very* unique personality type 😕

Even worse: Since Cüz’s passing, Aunt C0nn!e had been going around telling people she was actually *my grandmother,* not just my Grandma Sally’s baby sister & my birth mom D3bb!e's aunt 🤨 #sigh 

Both Sally *AND* ya girl were #heatedAF about that; we didn’t wanna be related to your a$$ in the first place, Aunt C0nn!e!!! 😤

...Why TF you tryna be “extra-related” to people that don’t even claim you, h0e?? 🤬 #ughhhh

Per usual, though, C0nn!e ain’t give a single eff who thought what about what- or whoever she did 🙄🤦🏾‍♀️

So that’s how I (briefly) became Aunt C0nn!e’s new "favorite relative" & special pet project, with the ultimate goal of—IDK, turning me into a female version of Cüzz0??? 

#iGetIt, though: 

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Cüz was a great dude 🏆

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When I tell you how much of an impact this guy had, even in d3@th, on the DC neighborhood our family is from, y’all GOT-sta believe me.

There’s adults today who were kids during Cüzz0’s heyday & they *STILL* talk about his legendary style, personality, & influence on their lives 🤩

I’ve always, *ALWAYS* maintained that Cüz never really d!3d, though his bodily form may no longer be with us. 

It’s my view that his spirit lives on eternally, if only through our infinite number of relatives & the many people he effected in his life’s work 🥲

Had to be a smoove two to three years I went around professing how Cüzz0’s *actually* still alive, in some way. 

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...People thought I was delusional as h3ll, y’all 😫🤦🏾‍♀️

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But my whole thing was & continues to be: 

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Why should a Real One care what a non-believer thinks or says??? 

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If we beefin’ over whether *MY OWN RELATIVE* is actually 💀 or not, from afar, absolutely no one can tell who the Sense Maker is (...& that’s forever me, bish 😉).

Even (especially???) as a really bright child, I’m not gonna waste precious moments of my life debating grown a$$ people about some 💩 I know to be unequivocally true.

Well, the overall effect of my obstinance regarding this matter was that people started thinking I was some kind of angel or supreme being or sum'n 👀 

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Cüz did *absolutely nothing* to contradict this view 🙃

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…In fact, he hyped *TF* outta that 💩 when he made an actual, in-person appearance at my high school one day 😱🤩😃

I felt sooooo validated by Cüzz0’s presence, y’all ☺️  

Some people legit thought I was insane—though *everything else* I said back then made perfect sense 🙄 #PleaseExplainIt—simply for keeping my beloved cousin’s memory alive.

It was truly a Büddy the Chr!$tm@s Elf-type moment for me, lol.

As it turns out, Cüz got caught up & was serving two consecutive life sentences *AND* in witness protection for 'allegedly' introducing dat c0c0 to the District of Columbia…

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...Which sucks, no doubt.

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BUT he wasn’t *actually* d3@d, y’all, just like ya girl had been saying all along... Yay!!! 😄🎉

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Anyways. That's the power of #BELIEF, followers: 

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In oneself *and* the greater good.

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Cüzz0, from one dad to another: 

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#HBDwh0re!!! 🥳💜

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