Today is the 50th anniversary of the famous “I
Have a Dream” speech, delivered by the late Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. to over
250,000 people from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington DC. This
speech is often referred to as a defining moment of the American Civil Rights
Movement. The speech has been referenced and televised so many times that I can
no longer recall whether I actually watched it back then, when I was just a
couple of years older than our grandson Joshua is now.
“I have a dream that my four little children will me day live
in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the
content of their character.” This sounds so simple, but fifty years ago it was nearly
impossible to imagine and unfortunately today we still have some distance to
go. The dream has also not been fully realized for people who are different in
other ways: different religions or ethnicities, different genders, different
socioeconomic circumstances, different views from our own. There is still much
work to be done to realize these dreams.
I have another dream. I have a dream that my four little
grandchildren will one day live in a world where major illness is but a minor
inconvenience. Unfortunately, this dream does not sound so simple. Yet,
although we still have some distance to go, it does not seem impossible to
imagine. If the citizens of the world could only figure out how to stop wasting
energy resisting Dr. King’s dream, we would have the resources we need to
realize this universal dream.
A few weeks ago I shared with you a piece written by our
Sharon friend, Mark Weiner, who was diagnosed with a brain tumor shortly after
my diagnosis last year. At 3:00 pm today, Mark is scheduled to be interviewed about
his experience on the Salk & Holley Show on WEEI 93.7 FM radio in Boston.
As part of this, funds will be raised for research at the Dana Farber Cancer
Institute in Boston, where Mark was treated. The radio station streams line on www.WEEI.com , and call-in donations can be made
toll-free at 1-877-738-1234 between 2 and 6 pm Eastern time. Mark must have
been channeling my thoughts when he wrote:
So for those who can, how about donations of $18? 0r,
multiples of $18. And each donor should explain to the phone operator the
meaning of 18 - Chai - a donation of life for all those suffering cancer.
Now, if one person pledges $18, they'll call it a donation. If 2 people
pledge $18, in harmony, they may laugh at the coincidence of 2 donations with
the same odd number (odd but even), and if 3 people pledge $18, they may think
it's an organization. But if 1000 people, yes 1000 people pledge $18, they may
think it's a movement, a movement to wipe out cancer. (Arlo Guthrie,
"Alice's Restaurant" - something like that)
[Some of you may be wondering why Mark talks about $18 or
multiples of $18. If numbers are assigned to the letters of the Hebrew alphabet
(the English equivalent would be A=1, B=2, C=3…), the total of the letters for
the Hebrew word for life, Chai, is
18. So it is common for people to give charity in multiples of 18.]
Have a healthy and wonderful day!
Love,
Rebecca
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