You're about to see and hear civil rights activist, the Rev. Al Sharpton, in a way you maybe haven't seen or heard him before.

Sharpton, 69, is perhaps looking at his life in a way that he didn't before.

Trust me, that happens to people of a certain age.

It's a healthy exercise, and after decades of being in the spotlight of the fight for civil rights, Alfred Charles Sharpton Jr., while still very much the activist, is now also a kind of senior leader for a movement that has lasted more than a century and a half.

When I sat down with him, we talked about the meaning of Black History Month, the state of Black youth in a society that focuses more on smartphones and social media than on collective issues and problems.

My conversation with Rev. Sharpton, who has focused so much on issues and problems, was, I think, illuminating. And I hope you feel the same way.