One Man He Resist

I celebrate the courage, passion and tenacious love of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. I admire, even envy, his equal commitments to peace and change. Dr. King faced the hate from his white brothers and sisters, illegal acts of his government, and beatings and murders of his black brothers and sisters with a persistent love. Seeking to change, never to destroy, those persons responsible, believing that "Love is the only force capable of transforming an enemy into friend."

On this national day of remembrance and celebration, everyone from the President of the United States to the President of the Local Chamber of Commerce will talk admiringly of Dr. King's life and passion. No doubt, thousands of his words will be read (and will inspire yet again).

What if we took it seriously?

Thousands of us will hear the words, feel the tingle, then walk back into our mis-beliefs unchanged. We may feel energized about equality and peace, but will we ignore the demand for nonviolence? If we acknowledge it at all, will we believe that nonviolence only applies to changing voting laws?

An equally important part of Dr. King's message was "Violence never brings permanent peace. It solves no social problem: it merely creates new and more complicated ones."

Persistently, Dr. King lived and preached, "Peace is not merely a distant goal that we seek, but a means by which we arrive at that goal."

Even President Obama, surely a sincere admirer of Dr. King, in his Nobel speech could not commit to Dr. King's example "in the world as it is." On one hand saying there was "nothing weak - nothing passive - nothing naïve" about Dr. King's belief in nonviolence, but justifying abandoning the principles because "of threats to the American people." Threats like death? Isn't that EXACTLY the threat facing Dr. King when he stubbornly stuck to his belief that love was still the best answer?

On this day, do we truly admire and celebrate him, or call him weak and naïve by celebrating only half of his legacy? I want what he wanted, equality and peace, but am I willing to commit to love as my only weapon and defense? Even if it means my life...

Baby, Baby, Baby, Light My Way

"Arrogant, overfed and unconcerned." I heard the words spoken only once, but they have resonated for months. The one who said them believed it described American culture; I knew it described me.

I am arrogant in valuing myself more than others by protecting my own safety and possessions at others' expense, arrogant in my certainty of truth, and in many other ways. I am overfed on food, entertainment and stuff. I have extravagantly fed my basic human needs but my appetite only grows. I live unconcerned, at a safe distance from anything that disturbs my familiar patterns.

By some measures, I seem to do well in these areas. But I know my paradigm is so radically skewed that my "doing well" is still firmly arrogant, overfed and unconcerned. I'm an infant proud of my ability to raise my head off the ground.

I thought I could use the occasion of a New Year to gather some ideas and get some energy behind them and perhaps experience growth in these areas. My first thought is that I find it ineffective "not" to be something. I want to "be" not to "avoid." So what are the healthy alternatives to "arrogant, overfed and unconcerned"? It's not "ashamed, starving and obsessed." I believe the alternative to arrogant is humble; the alternative to overfed is content; the alternative to unconcerned is loving.

Humility, contentment and love - they are big ideas worthy of ambitious plans and they are also components of daily interactions. How can I move the trajectory of my life toward humility, contentment and love? Seems like it should start by living today humbly, contently and lovingly, with those that depend on me and those that are interdependent with me. It seems inevitable to me that it grows from there, and that actually loving others as my equal will impact how I care about their civil rights, human rights, starvation, illness, or imprisonment; how I understand or share their joy, sorrow or pride; how I count their lives and families as important to protect and nurture as mine.

If that's where, then how? I don't see a path, but I've got a sense of the direction. "If I want to live, I've got to die to myself someday." Sounds painful.