I remember when I was about eight years old...oh how I loved listening to my Uncle Reese at his hamburger joint as he told story after story. He was a master storyteller…so on hot, humid, summer days in Logansport, Louisiana, it was always a SPECIAL treat for me to go sit at his counter, under the whir of old ceiling fans, and on my own barstool! His burgers were 2-for-a-quarter & they were mmm-mmm good!! 

I often saw a little girl there - about the same age as me. We'd smile at each other...but I could never understand why…she always came in the back door… and had to sit on the OTHER side of the counter - & not with me?

Years later - 1963…I was watching our family’s black-&-white TV, when Dr. Martin Luther King bravely stood on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial & shared his dream with the entire Nation. When he said, "I HAVE A DREAM...that one day my four little children will NOT be judged by the color of their skin, but by the CONTENT of their CHARACTER". Whew!! It felt like he was speaking directly to me that day! 

His words jolted my mind and pierced my heart, and my B-&-W world changed forever. Even as a young teen, I knew I could no longer IGNORANTLY accept that I had to sit on the other side of the counter from ANYONE - ever again! That day, I made a choice NOT to live life in B&W…but ONLY high definition! 

Today, I ask myself, “IF one man’s courage to speak his truth can change a Nation, then WHY NOT ME? Why not MY voice? Why not now? 
🦋