Nonviolence means avoiding not only external physical violence but also internal violence of spirit. You not only refuse to shoot a man, but you refuse to hate him.
– Martin Luther King, Jr. –
I find myself drawn to people of amazing courage. I read about them, I study them, I am in complete awe of them. Great sources of inspiration include moving true-life stories portraying the courageous work of a single person’s actions in books like Tracy Kidder’s “Mountains beyond Mountains”, the story of Dr. Paul Farmer’s work, and “Three Cups of Tea”, written by and about the work of Greg Mortenson. Then there those who make history, such as Mother Theresa, Gandhi, and Martin Luther King, people whose work changed the world in an altruistic, life elevating way.
It all starts with a vision of a better world, of righting a wrong, making a difference, believing it is possible for one single individual to be an integral part of transformation. It starts with the belief that one’s actions can have a huge effect. It takes such great courage to take such action. It means rolling up your sleeves and getting down to the business of doing. Once the action is taken, a powerful voice, a progressive movement, and a deep rooted change comes alive. MLK’s life work affirms the idea of The Power Of One to inspire The Many.
From up high on the mountain top, the vision is clear. You can see beyond the limits of what I call the “stifled little mind”, the part of the mind that excels at limiting us, of not allowing us to have a dream. Even if one envisions a greater world, the “stifled little mind” doesn’t allow one to have courage and belief that one single person can make a huge difference in the world. The view from the mountain top gives a vision, but the problem is that at some point, you come down from the mountain top. And once we descend, we are quick to lose the view we had from the top. We have to learn to keep the perspective in mind, and learn to live with it from moment to moment. So few people rise to such elevations of perspective.
How unbelievable that, IN MY LIFETIME, the prophet of our age, Dr. Martin Luther King, shared his powerful vision to free our nation from the deepest evil: hatred!
Let’s honor Dr.King’s memory by choosing to live his dream of equality, brotherhood, love, and understanding. Let’s give younger generations the gift of his promised land: peace, love, freedom, and opportunity for ALL.
Here is a YouTube video that was set to the music of U2, “In the Name of Love”. I still get chills every time I hear Martin Luther King’s speech, “I Have a Dream”. How I wish I could have physically been there to hear Dr. King’s speech at the Lincoln Memorial (but, you know, I was just a kid!).
Yes, we must all do our part to keep the dream alive!
