To whom it may inspire,

This is one man's story- mine.

Moreso than any wrestler on the Ring of Honor roster, I have climbed higher, achieved more, and fallen farther.

Nearly a decade on the independents.

A rise to become a bonafide superstar in the professional wrestling industry.

A world champion 3 times over who gained respect of his peers while plying his trade on 6 continents, hundreds of thousands of dollars, magazine covers, action figures, video games, t.v. commercials, and prestige of which i could only dream.

And I lost it all.

And it was all my fault.

I suppose I was too immature to handle the success I achieved

The well-informed die-hard fans of ROH have heard the rumors.

"Joey's life is in shambles", "Joey has personal issues", "Joey has demons", "Joey showed up in 'no condition to perform'".

That's the thing about rumors, they're usually true.

In this case, they were.

3 drug overdoses, 7 car wrecks, a 5 month stay in drug & alcohol rehabilitation, and countless broken hearts along the way, including my own.

My former employer did everything they could for me. They gave me chance after chance after chance.

I did this to myself.

I am a grown man, and when you are a grown man, you make your own decisions, you don't place blame on your environment, or anything else for that matter.

You admit when you're wrong.

I have made mistakes.

I can tell you that I am standing on my own two feet today, clean & sober.

I'll tell you why.

I answered the call.

It was Jimmy Jacobs.

This benevolent individual had something I needed to hear.

Jimmy said for once in my troubled career, there was a choice that could save me.

Jimmy said my world as I knew it had become a den of iniquity.

Jimmy said there's only one road to freedom, one road to redemption, and one road back to the land of the living for souls like ours.

That road is being paved by The Age of the Fall.

If that wasn't enough to draw me to the AotF, he continued.....

There are no activation fees or background checks.

The only requirement is a willingness to rise above what will inevitably fall.

That was music to my ears.

For, I have had all I've wanted of alot of things I've had, and a whole helluva lot more than I needed of some things that turned out bad.

And the AotF are like-minded.

We, in the AotF, are the practitioners of an agenda-free agenda.

I, along w/ my brothers & sisters in arms (Jimmy, Tyler, Necro, Lacey, & Allison), immerse ourselves so completely in our cause, and the truth it conveys, that those in the audience who are rigorously honest w/ themselves can scarcely avoid becoming similarly involved.

I want the readers to be clear on this.

This is NOT lip service.

This is NOT a way for me to "get over" on you.

This IS the truth.

If you don't listen, it is your fault.

The road is being paved....... Which road are you traveling?

-Joey Matthews

Nothing Stops

You fall down. You get back up. Nothing stops. And the memory only serves as a reminder that there is much left to be done.

Acknowledging the setbacks of last weekend doesn’t mean we’ll dwell in defeat. Loss—and the reaction it—is a vital part of any personal growth. We came into the weekend knowing the deck was stacked against us. What’s new? We know no they don’t want to see us succeed. With our backs against the wall we came out firing in the hopes that our backwards hand would be able to fend off the predatory brigade that was closing in on our tag belts. Unfortunately, we fell short this time; losing our belts, and in the process, temporarily cutting the air from our voice.

Loss…

…and the reaction it…

Because we’re still here. Because we’re still breathing. We’ve picked up our pride and dusted off its shoulder. Because there will always be something to fight for as long as exists persecution and genocide and desecration, both in physical and intellectual realms. Life as we know it is a war. Everyday is worth standing your ground, and we’re not waking up to back the fuck down. Remember all the times you’ve been stuck in a hole, alone. Whether it be by melancholy condition, a broken heart, or by way of an inexplicable entropic division of self; you feel like the bottom has dropped out and you’re stuck standing on this little ledge, alone. And every time you’ve cowered until daybreak showed you a regrettable escape. Every time until now. Now is the time we all close our eyes and step off this ledge together; into despair, into oblivion. And what awaits us? Freedom awaits; the will is the means to change our lives by doing and being the all the ways we know we can and should be. Simple, I say. And simple it is.

We had our taste of gold and the power it holds. It’s now an addiction. No Remorse Corps, be sure you haven’t heard the last of us. Come February. Come Lond Island and New York, we’ll ride in full force. Lacey, Jimmy, Necro, Myself… and Joey Matthews. Age of the Fall. Strength beyond strength.

See you in Dayton and Chicago

The measure of power is not in its style or accomplishment, but rather in its action and consequence. Thus, what we have in store for the weekend’s events will only serve as another reminder that the scope of our strength is interminable…

He came to us with a chip on his shoulder. And it wasn’t what he spoke that got our attention. It was the look in his eyes that conveyed in conviction an aura of change; our change. He fits right in, we said. He’s glad to fall in line and fight this war, he said. His truths are our truths. And he gave us his pledge; his devotion. And in return we have given him the avenue to drive his point into the heart of this wretched business that has betrayed him time and time again. This weekend, for the first time in a long time, he’ll fight for the only answer any of us can ever really believe in: he’ll fight for himself.

Shedding light on another situation, our recruiting doesn’t stop with just this weekend. We’ve had our eyes on another talent that seems to have fallen off as of late. It seems that not only has his professional life been a victim, but personally his demons are biting at his heels. Now, what and why are questions that dig beyond what we can assume. Without those answers though, obvious changes in his demeanor and behavior have led Jimmy and me to believe that maybe we could be of some use to this confused soul. He seems to be spiraling down the same dark, vacant fissure we all fell into that landed us here, in this revolution. The question isn’t if, but when will he hit bottom?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xXttjevsM7Q

36

Each day is a step in the right direction…

Regression is a literal impossibility; disposed by ideas of revolution…

Lately, I have been presented with possibilities of reversion; as if our society could return to its past, when instinct governed and humanity was as simple as animal desire. I shun that notion. Keep in mind; we aren’t the bad guys here. It’s the weak who have vilified us, and the newly hopeful who have deified us…

Age of the Fall has set out to accomplish specific—though admittedly at-first perplexing—goals that involve the redesign of human nature. Some think the task is a lost cause. But I ask simply, why? If we follow the path, we won’t see the landscape. But, if we dare to dream then why can’t anything be possible? Anything, including a simple change in direction. It doesn’t have to be bigger than you and us, but when you is this ever-growing army we’ve been building, then when that army doubles, and then doubles again, and again, notice has to be taken.

This gold we’re wearing is an amplifier. If they didn’t want to listen before, they could tune us out, but now they have to hear what needs to be said. We are YOUR Ring of Honor World Tag Team Champions, and as such we are just the breath of fresh air that this decaying business needs. And not the breath to fill up its gasping lungs, rather the oxygen to ignite the fires that will burn it to the ground. We’ll take our second breath and blow those ashes to the wind. From there, we’ll build something new. We’ll fight for change. We’ll stand for the next generation of boys and girls who have nothing to believe in. We’ll be hope.

AOTFBlack@hotmail.com

Tell me, what is one thing you want to change about your life? We’ll work from there.

Dream Come True

The best dreams aren’t the ones that fade off into forever, but rather the ones that explode into reality. Across the room I saw eyes melt and felt hearts drop as our hands were raised in glorious victory this past Sunday at Final Battle 2007. For the first time, we owned New York City, and you can believe we slept not a wink that splendid evening…

Our humble revolution has now entered the New Year with gold on its mantle, but we still have a chip on our shoulder. We’ve taken our time to take it all in. And if ever there was a moment in time to celebrate, Final Battle was it. The Briscoe Brothers were formidable opponents and heroic champions throughout their illustrious reign atop the wrestling world. Ending their term as standard-bearers is not something to be taken lightly; so Age of the Fall members—wherever you may be—feel free to smile a short smile and let sensation cascade naturally through your veins. We did it. Together. We did this…

From scratch we built this up. From nothing to everything in such a short time. Lucky for dreamers the fight has only just begun. All we’ve changed is path. Remaining are the eyes and ears and hearts of millions who are left unaware. This revolution isn’t about the past. It’s about here and now and how we can make a difference by creating awareness, and simply changing the way we think and believe. The ones who oppose, you hate us for having ideals? For taking a stand? For taking chances? Then I say, stop being so afraid to feel. Remember, I started out just like you. Look at me now. Look at us now…we’re still dreaming.