Sunday, January 20, 2019

Favorite Martin Luther King, Jr. Quotes


This year I felt deeply compelled to post on Martin Luther King Jr. day. 

I will be honest, I have lived with a fairly common level of oblivion to just how meaningful and formative this day was and is for this nation. It wasn't until earlier this month, as I attended a "Dismantling Racism" class, that I even noticed just how oblivious I was. 

Because of my blindness of and years of allowing myself to remain blind to racial issues, it is important to me that I offer a post honoring Martin Luther King Jr. and his life well lived. 

Here are a few of my favorite quotes of Martin Luther King Jr.: 

"I have decided to stick with Love, Hate is too great a burden to bear." 

"Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter."

"We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope." 

Some of my all-time favorite words are woven into those quotes; like Love, Hope, and Justice. 

Those words also were very high on the list of importance to Martin Luther King Jr. 

In the class I attended a few weeks ago, I was fortunate enough to meet the daughter of a Pastor who regularly marched with Dr. King. Listening to her stories of Martin Luther King Jr. and the causes that he was passionate about, it was obvious that he was a man that would not back down. He boldly went into 'battle' (meaning speeches, marches, etc.) knowing that each one could be his last. He knew that the position he took was dangerous, but he had deep enough faith, hope for justice and love for mankind, that he did not let fear stop him. 

If you wish to read more about Martin Luther King Jr.'s life, check out this link: https://www.history.com/topics/black-history/martin-luther-king-jr

As I read the news this morning, I was so saddened to read about, in 2019, youth standing in the way of an Indigenous Peoples' March and news anchors (yes plural) making racial slurs about MLK Day. One would think that in 2019 we should be far beyond these occurrences. We should be more kind, more educated, love more, and more Just than to allow these things to happen in this day and age... 

As Martin Luther King Jr. said, "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere." May we continue to fight for justice for all, and model love and hope in the way we live, just as Martin Luther King Jr. did every day of his life! 

Please share Your Favorite Martin Luther King Jr. Quote, in the Comments Below...