xSunday Musings - January 16, 2022
“Every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low.”
Most readers will recognize the above as a line from the 1963 “I have a dream.” Speech of Martin Luther King Jr. I have heard and read that speech more times than I can count. I reread it this morning. Today, I, along with millions of others, set aside time to remember the courage, wisdom and love of this very human man, The Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. For reasons only those who proport to understand the mystery of the human mind will appreciate this morning I focused on the lines “Every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low.” What wisdom is encased in these lines? What does it mean for every valley to be exalted? Obviously I should consult google. As with every other question I have, many have asked this question before me. The most common meaning assigned to the word exalted in this context is “raised”. Now I understand. “Every valley shall be raised up and every hill and mountain lowered until there is a level playing ground; until the dream he mentions earlier in the speech “All men are guaranteed the unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” becomes manifest reality.
In other words, the dream is that the playing field of life would be made equal. All of us, regardless of color, gender, race, background, religion or lack of religion, sexual orientation, or other social constructs, would have equal access to nutritious food, safe and comfortable homes, education, health care, safe communities, a safe home environment, safe work environment, decent salaries, access to time, space, tools/instruments to discover and hone our talents, access to the God or non-God of our understanding, and a loving support system. This would be socialism at its best. It certainly would not be the type of socialism known as communism which has become a way to enrich the coffers of the leaders while dolling out the remaining crumbs to the masses; not a system of persons in power dictating who is deserving and of what they are deserving. No, this is vision/dream which all can envision; a dream which does not deny even those who now unequally enjoy temporary riches which have to be protected with nuclear bombs, security systems, elaborate justification of half-truths and outright lies. They too shall benefit as equals living in harmony with all the universe.
All creations begin with an often-blurry vision which only becomes clear as one begins the actual construction. Soon what begins as a vision takes on a life of its own as we allow it to exhale its own breath. Whether channeling a new song or symphony, a new tale, a building or a painting until we let go of the illusion that we are the creator rather than the mere vehicle it cannot be born.
This was the magic of Martin Luther King Jr.; to channel a dream which we have too often attempted to mold into our own likeness rather than allowing its breath to emerge. It is not too late. More than ever the reality of how much we have failed to guarantee the unalienable rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness to all who call this land home is evident. It is not too late to dream; to envision a home where all are allowed to blossom into the best the can be; to make that vision manifest reality.
Thanks Martin.
Written January 16, 2022
Jimmy F Pickett
coachpickett.org
“Every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low.”
Most readers will recognize the above as a line from the 1963 “I have a dream.” Speech of Martin Luther King Jr. I have heard and read that speech more times than I can count. I reread it this morning. Today, I, along with millions of others, set aside time to remember the courage, wisdom and love of this very human man, The Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. For reasons only those who proport to understand the mystery of the human mind will appreciate this morning I focused on the lines “Every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low.” What wisdom is encased in these lines? What does it mean for every valley to be exalted? Obviously I should consult google. As with every other question I have, many have asked this question before me. The most common meaning assigned to the word exalted in this context is “raised”. Now I understand. “Every valley shall be raised up and every hill and mountain lowered until there is a level playing ground; until the dream he mentions earlier in the speech “All men are guaranteed the unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” becomes manifest reality.
In other words, the dream is that the playing field of life would be made equal. All of us, regardless of color, gender, race, background, religion or lack of religion, sexual orientation, or other social constructs, would have equal access to nutritious food, safe and comfortable homes, education, health care, safe communities, a safe home environment, safe work environment, decent salaries, access to time, space, tools/instruments to discover and hone our talents, access to the God or non-God of our understanding, and a loving support system. This would be socialism at its best. It certainly would not be the type of socialism known as communism which has become a way to enrich the coffers of the leaders while dolling out the remaining crumbs to the masses; not a system of persons in power dictating who is deserving and of what they are deserving. No, this is vision/dream which all can envision; a dream which does not deny even those who now unequally enjoy temporary riches which have to be protected with nuclear bombs, security systems, elaborate justification of half-truths and outright lies. They too shall benefit as equals living in harmony with all the universe.
All creations begin with an often-blurry vision which only becomes clear as one begins the actual construction. Soon what begins as a vision takes on a life of its own as we allow it to exhale its own breath. Whether channeling a new song or symphony, a new tale, a building or a painting until we let go of the illusion that we are the creator rather than the mere vehicle it cannot be born.
This was the magic of Martin Luther King Jr.; to channel a dream which we have too often attempted to mold into our own likeness rather than allowing its breath to emerge. It is not too late. More than ever the reality of how much we have failed to guarantee the unalienable rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness to all who call this land home is evident. It is not too late to dream; to envision a home where all are allowed to blossom into the best the can be; to make that vision manifest reality.
Thanks Martin.
Written January 16, 2022
Jimmy F Pickett
coachpickett.org
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