New Archive:
January 2001 Issue
I Have A Dream:
This January 15, Make Martin Luther King, Jr.'s Words Ring True for You
By Dan Messinger
James Taylor sings, "Let us turn our thoughts today to Martin Luther King, Jr. and recognize that there are ties between us, all men and women living on the earth." It's funny, I don't remember anyone singing a song about President's day, or Labor Day, or Groundhog Day. (Though they did make a movie about that one.)
In America we have a national holiday every couple of months. Most of the time we celebrate our holidays by eating and shopping. Pretty much the same way we celebrate Jewish holidays, minus the shopping of course. But on Martin Luther King Day there is a real effort to memorialize this great leader in a way that doesn't involve our credit cards.
Dr. King is famous for having a dream. And it is the struggle for and realization of that dream which we commemorate this year on January 15th.
Martin Luther King, Jr. had a dream about a country with racial equality and true freedom for all. Many communities create a day of service where people remember his dream with something more substantial than shopping. It is a wonderful tradition that is a true memorial to the work of Dr. King.
Do you have a dream? (I'm not talking about the one where you are marooned on an island with the cast of Charlie's Angels.) I'm talking about a vision for you or for our community. Certainly we can't all be Martin Luther King, if we were, it would make the phone book terribly confusing! But, on our own level, we all have the ability to dream. On January 15th we remember his dream. That leaves us with roughly 364 days to work on our own.
The world is a complicated place. There are many wonderful things out there, but there are certainly things that could use a little improvement. If you are having trouble thinking of what you want to work on, please use my simple, "How to Figure out My Dream" worksheet. (If you would like your dreams interpreted, please call your local celebrity psychic.)
You will need a newspaper, a blank sheet of paper, and a pencil (as always, a number 2 pencil is preferred). Flip through the paper and jot down on your piece of paper which headlines interest you. Perhaps they make you upset, perhaps they make you smile, but for whatever reason, they have caught your attention.
Once you have selected your articles, read through them and select one article that upsets you and one that makes you happy. Why do these articles affect you? Do they deal with social injustice? Are the rich taking advantage of the poor? Is there a story about a person or country overcoming adversity? Is there a moral lesson involved?
On your piece of paper, write down the two lessons that these stories teach us. Now you have two possibilities with which to work. Alright, so these might be world or local issues more than they are your dreams. But it's a starting point.
What can you do to make a change? How can you affect even just one other person's life? When you cut to the bottom line, in our dreams we are all trying to make the world a better place. A better place for us, for our friends and families, and ultimately for everyone on earth.
Obviously, no one person can do it alone. But, if everyone one does just a little bit, our combined result will be remarkable. And you don't have to do it alone! Just go to your school and look around. You'll find people who have already done the leg-work and organized a group who cares about your issue. Join them, and as a team you will make a difference!
But Dan, you may ask, do you have a dream? Mr. Big Shot, talking about all of our dreams. Why not put your pillow where your mouth is and tell us your dream! Well, to be honest if you have read this far, consider one of them to have come true!
Dan
Messinger is an aspiring comedian living in Los Angeles. A graduate of
University of Michigan, he is a former JCSC Fellow at UConn. He is also
the Youth Director at Sinai Temple, L.A
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