HAPPY MLK DAY

I have always struggled with how to celebrate MLK day on more than a personal level. It might be my favorite holiday, as far as meaning and truth. Yet, I haven't found a purposeful celebration. I enjoy MLK walks. In Atlanta (birthplace of MLK, as you probably know) there are signs posted throughout the city that say "a day on, not a day off" and I'd like to live by that. It's easy to just enjoy the day off, but it would be more meaningful to act.

These days, MLK's words of peace are the most striking to me. With the state of our world and our country, I find a deep longing for rest and peace.

If you haven't read Maya Angelou's poem "Amazing Peace" I recommend you do. It's a beautiful poem, and I'll post part of it here.

"Hope is born again in the faces of children.
It rides on the shoulders of our aged as they walk into their sunsets.
Hope spreads around the earth, brightening all things,
Even hate, which crouches breeding in dark corridors.

In our joy, we think we hear a whisper.
At first it is too soft. Then only half heard.
We listen carefully as it gathers strength.
We hear a sweetness.
The word is Peace.
It is loud now.
Louder than the explosion of bombs."

This is only one wonderful section of the poem. It reminds me of Martin Luther King, Jr's hope and his passion for peace. What he did to change the world should inspire us every day, not just on his day.