Today was Martin Luther King, Jr Day. At the university, they were promoting a day ON not OFF where you volunteer to help different organizations in the community. I really wanted to do something like that, but they couldn't give me any opportunities that also involved three little girls. So, we made our own volunteer opportunity. We cleaned up trash twice today. The first time, we just went around the neighborhood walking and got back home with two Wal-Mart bags full of trash. Later in the day, when it was a nice 70+ degrees and a little more suitable for being outside, we drove up to the highway on the other side of our neighborhood. We spent about an hour and only worked one side of the road the distance of about five or six light poles. We filled up six large trash bags! It's amazing how much trash we both generate as a society and just leave on God's beautiful earth.
During supper, we listened to MLK's I have a dream speech. I truthfully don't think I've ever listened to it before and yet I recognized most of it. The girls don't understand why we would have a time in our history where blacks wouldn't be allowed to be in the same room or would have to sit in the back or something. That concept is totally foreign to them. I think that's the purpose. I wish all people had difficulty understanding it.
I asked the girls what their dreams about a better community would be. Jordan immediately shot her hand in the air and said, "That people wouldn't throw trash on the ground!" Hailey said her dream was that people would know God. Jordan then said, "Oh, and that people would water." (Hmmm. We seem to have an environmentalist on our hands!) Hailey countered with, "and people would have families." Then I asked Ashley what her dream was. She started talking about how her dream was that she was queen and Jordan was princess and she, Jordan, and Hailey fought bad guys and sometimes went to FairyLand. After a few minutes, I said, "Ashley, I think you're confusing the meaning of the word 'dream.' It's not the kind of dream you have when you go to sleep, but a vision for the future." She said, "Oh."
My dream? That everyone works together. Period. Work together to keep the house clean. Work together to ensure quality environments at work. Work together as a church to bring people to Christ. Work together as Americans to make progress instead of playing political games. Work together, not against one another, and not exclusively for benefit to just oneself. Together, we can make a better world.
During supper, we listened to MLK's I have a dream speech. I truthfully don't think I've ever listened to it before and yet I recognized most of it. The girls don't understand why we would have a time in our history where blacks wouldn't be allowed to be in the same room or would have to sit in the back or something. That concept is totally foreign to them. I think that's the purpose. I wish all people had difficulty understanding it.
I asked the girls what their dreams about a better community would be. Jordan immediately shot her hand in the air and said, "That people wouldn't throw trash on the ground!" Hailey said her dream was that people would know God. Jordan then said, "Oh, and that people would water." (Hmmm. We seem to have an environmentalist on our hands!) Hailey countered with, "and people would have families." Then I asked Ashley what her dream was. She started talking about how her dream was that she was queen and Jordan was princess and she, Jordan, and Hailey fought bad guys and sometimes went to FairyLand. After a few minutes, I said, "Ashley, I think you're confusing the meaning of the word 'dream.' It's not the kind of dream you have when you go to sleep, but a vision for the future." She said, "Oh."
My dream? That everyone works together. Period. Work together to keep the house clean. Work together to ensure quality environments at work. Work together as a church to bring people to Christ. Work together as Americans to make progress instead of playing political games. Work together, not against one another, and not exclusively for benefit to just oneself. Together, we can make a better world.
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