I Have a Dream

I thought this would be fitting seeing as though this day marks the 50 year anniversary of the Martin Luther King Jr.'s, I Have a Dream speech. All of us have known this speech pretty much our whole lives but I actually learned a few things about it today. For instance, he didn't set out to give that speech that day, he actually had a scripted speech that he was in the middle of reading when a women from the crowd yelled out, "Dr. King, tell them about your dream!" So that is exactly what he did. Off the cuff he delivered that 17 min speech that became one of the most well know speeches of all time. Another fact I learned was that at the end of his speech, as he was leaving the podium, a little boy asked Dr. King if he could have a copy of the speech, so instead, he folded up the speech and handed it to the little boy and that "little boy" still has that piece of paper to this day that he says will never be sold even though he was offered 3 million for it. Some interesting facts aren't they?

I was thinking about this subject actually, well more of the subject of diversity and I have some thoughts myself about it. How many of us really welcome diversity in our lives and I don't just mean the color of our skin but everything that diversity stands for? Are you accepting of others who aren't like you? Sounds silly to write that sentence, kinda like I'm writing a paper for an elementary school assignment but to be serious here, really think about it, are you accepting of those who say..., don't share the same views as you? Do you want your friends to think like you think and if they don't does it make you annoyed or a bit exasperated? I believe most of us feel a little like that at times with different subjects that we feel strongly about. This is what I mean, I'll give you a couple examples: Food has become the thing to talk about, watch on TV, to be a foodie is all the rage, and everyone has their opinion on the subject. I for one have many friends who are on every part of the spectrum when it comes to what they eat or won't eat and why and what they label themselves as. Everything from being a strict vegan, juicer, clean eater, moderation eater and the Foodie and that is just the condensed list. I, however, eat what I like. I get annoyed with the Foodie who sits on their high horse and criticizes things that are any less than perfection on there pallet (insert eye-roll here). But I have tried really hard to be accepting of those who choose to eat/do things with there food differently. How boring would this world be if everyone did the same exact thing? I believe it's called communism or North Korea.

I have this wonderful, awesome group of girl friends that get together every year to spend some quality time with, to re-charge the batteries, if you want to call it and laugh till it hurts. Each of these women are so different from each other yet we still have this very strong bond that no matter the length of time we are away from each other and the changes we go through in each of our lives, we still come together at the very least, that one weekend each year and never skip a beat. One of those dear girls would love to live in a tee-pee, yes a tee-pee, she also happens to be vegan and lives on an organic farm. Another girl just became cancer free and is living her life to be more non-toxic and learned that everyday is a gift. Another girl just does her own thing and we don't hear from her until it's time to plan the next Girls Weekend but we know she'll be there and so on. See what makes our bond so special is that each of us know we can learn something and appreciate each of us for who we are and what we believe in. We share stories and eat each other's food creations. We cry, laugh, listen and know that we can be ourselves. I think it's so important to have. I must add that sometimes we do like to throw in our advice and/or opinions and that's okay too.

This goes the same for family too. Just because we are family certainly doesn't mean that we all think the same way, act the same way and do the same things. No way hose', lol. Actually it's far from that. Families are usually where you find the most diversity in thinking and that can cause tension between them. The good thing about family is that they are bonded to you no matter what and like kids, they act out to the ones they love the most. Doesn't mean it's any easier to take or right but really it's the truth.

So my take-away of the day is to think before you speak and act. Be open to others who are different in what they think and do. Learn something from them. Be kind. Be thankful and you will see that people will respond to you in a much different way, a better way. It's a simple solution to a big problem in the world. Slow down, enjoy all parts of God's gift of life here on this place called Earth.

What's your dream?