MLK Day
I recall having worked on my portrait of Dr King for about a month when I ran it by a coworker at the handbell place where I spent a long satisfying spate working a Unix network and designing web content in Coldfusion.When I told him what it was ... and that I wanted him to check it out, he gave me this superbly trifling look as though I was "messing" with him — being black and me being white.
Anyway, the look on his face when he first set eyes upon it told it all. I knew it was something I would not need to hide from others. It has subsequently ended up on my digital frame. I don't recall if it made a previous iteration of the blog ... but here it is:
Today is Martin Luther King Day. It is a bittersweet anniversary since last January when my stepfather had a cerebrovascular accident at his home on this day. Prior to this, the day didn't serve up much in the way of meaning for me personally.
I have long had an abiding respect for Dr King which was cultivated in my personal study of his writings and various rhetorical endeavors in the way of speeches, public speaking engagements, news clips, other television programs and the like.
The thing that formed my attitude toward him consisted of his manner of speaking. What he had to say was important, but his knack for the delivery of the spoken word was what caught my attention.
I never felt threatened by his presentation, despite the fact that I arise from a fairly long line of bigots the level of which has diminished greatly over time. This, coupled with the fact that I find a person with a rifle waiting in ambush from hiding to be cowardice incarnate. So ...
For who he was to his constituents and all that he taught me I am happy to celebrate Martin Luther King Day.