MLK Day

Today I spent the day with family instead of working.  The USA has a holiday honoring Martin Luther King Jr.  His 17 minute speech "I have a Dream" in Washington DC occurred when I was only 6 years old.  By the time I was a teenager his Dream was being talked about and studied.  It is interesting how something taking less than 20 minutes can have such an impact.  His ideas and beliefs were not just things he said but something he lived and died for.  I believe it a particularly sad irony that this man that believed in nonviolence was killed so violently.  I read several books on racial prejudice and the problems surrounding judging people by the color of their skin because of my interest in Martin Luther King, Jr.

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.

Read more: Martin Luther King, Jr., Quotations — Infoplease.com
http://www.infoplease.com/spot/mlkquotes1.html#ixzz1jg8mJGMz

I wanted my children to learn what Dr. King taught.  I decided that I achieved that dream when my son was playing ball as a 10 year old and pointed out his coach to me as the guy in the blue shirt with no mention of the color of his skin. 

Some of his quotes:

"I have decided to love. If you are seeking the highest good, I think you can find it through love. And the beautiful thing is that we are moving against wrong when we do it, because John was right, God is love. He who hates does not know God, but he who has love has the key that unlocks the door to the meaning of the ultimate reality." -Martin Luther King, Jr.

Returning violence for violence multiplies violence, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars... Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.
Martin Luther King Jr.  http://www.quotationspage.com/quotes/Martin_Luther_King_Jr.

I have lived in the darkness of violence.  Like a single candle in a dark room love drives out what hate can never stamp out.  I honor Martin Luther King, Jr. as being a hero and a chain breaker.  His life was not perfect.  Plenty of people will point out his imperfections.  However, he set in motion a belief that his dream is possible.