For the second year in a row, I found myself in the heart of the south and in a significant city of note on Martin Luther King Day.  Last year I performed in Birmingham, Alabama, and this year in Mobile.  While I was sitting in my van in the parking lot I had slept in, I wrote this:

Today, on this day we celebrate a great American. Doctor Martin Luther King transformed the hearts and minds of not all Americans, but many during a time of tumult discontent and turmoil. Doctor King was more than a speech about a dream, for his dream was not just that of a dreamer or a poet but that of a visionary.

His speech, that we celebrate today, was that of a man full of hope that the hearts of men could be connected with a common theme and purpose of humanity. Of course, he is most remembered for that bold, dangerous, and uplifting speech, but he was so much more than that.

For most of his life, he passionately preached of an America that recognized all Americans as children of God in a country that was created with the sole purpose of blending the colors and spirits from the globe into one nation of imperfection, and a blessed and glorious experiment.

We have come far, but still have far to go. Yes, as I sit here in a parking lot in Montgomery, Alabama, I'm struck by the thought of the blessings that have been afforded to me and the wondrousness of this land knowing that we still have so far to go.
My hope is that someday the dreams and sacrifices of Dr King, Rosa Parks, and countless others, both known and unknown, will be realized when the sun comes over the horizon to a beautiful new day.  When the differences, both created at birth and those of choice, will be embraced with arms and hearts.  When we can get on with the business of creating the more perfect union that our founding fathers spoke of.

I'm eternally optimistic of what we can become when we put aside what makes us different and embrace what makes us Americans. Imagine what we could do together by seeking our commonalities first, rather than last. What could we achieve by listening to each other, rather than talking over each other? What could we accomplish if we forgave ourselves and our brothers and sisters, and found love in our hearts instead of blame.

We could be the best versions of ourselves and see the best versions in each other.  We have come back again and again to the speech Dr. King delivered in 1963 but I think perhaps it's time for that dream to become a reality. It only does that by us doing that.

It doesn't come with wishes hopes and exaltations, it comes with the work that it takes to plant and grow and nurture a seed and harvest a crop. It doesn't come with a moment's goodness, but it comes with the rest of our lives of being good and doing good. I'm ready for that to happen now. Are you?