“Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.” MLK

Funny that a friend posted that on Facebook last night.  I had been thinking about the way that Martin Luther King, Jr.'s words  can apply to so many facets of life.  On the way home on Sunday, I was listening to a radio show where they were talking about him being a reluctant leader.  That while there were others in his community more seasoned and who were more senior in the fight, they didn't think the bus boycott would work.  They thought it would fizzle out before long, and didn't want their names attached to a failed attempt.  So Martin Luther King, Jr took the role.  Funny, I had never heard that part before.  

Nor had I heard that in the beginning, his speech wasn't going over all that well.  There was a witter who had prepared and eloquent speech for that cold day, and in that moment, they were losing the drive and attention of those gathered.  One of Martin Luther King, Jr's advisers near his side, said to his friend to "tell them about the dream."  And in that moment, the young minister went off of the prepared remarks and into his own words...

"I say to you today, my friends, so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal."

I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.

I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.

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.

I have a dream today."

This is just a small excerpt from the speech, right when he first begins to speak about the dream.  Off-script, off-message, but honest.  And it speaks directly to all of us.  As a parent, this speaks to me on many levels.  No child is more important or more deserving of love or a quality education simply because of where they were born or live, what their last name is, how much their parents donate to a cause or group, or who they "hang out" with.  

In this crazy life, sometimes we lose sight.  We are coming to see more and more instances of children who believe they are so much more important than others that they ridicule others, using profanity, spreading lies about and leveling vile charges they know are not true.  Lately, the parents are even coming to help the use spread the lies and hurt the other youth, somehow leading themselves to believe that if their own child achieves superiority form this, that it somehow makes the morally hollow behavior okay, as though the ends justify the means.

In my own experience, I am seeing the schools and community organizations where the youth are being bullied almost give up in trying to deal with the offenders.  I was told that since the family clearly sanctioned the behavior and participated in it, that taking action was somehow pointless.  That kind of approach only sanctions the behavior and encourages those leading the bullying.

So as we begin a new year, highlighting the beginning of a nre presidency in our nation and using the day of reflection to remember the legacy of Dr Martin Luther King, Jr, lets also remember that while we have come a long way in accepting one another, we have some distance left to go in terms of standing up for one another.  The dream still stands.  Let;s judge not based upon the color of one's skin, the size of their bank account, the perceived popularity, but based upon the content of the character.

Hugs to all.  Now lets go make this day a beautiful new day of kindness and beauty- for everyone.