Monday, January 17, 2011

Dreaming of what can be...


Today is Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday. Martin Luther King inspired Americans by sharing his dreams for what could be. Since I was in high school I have had a personal tradition of taking a few minutes to do some dreaming of my own. I am well aware that this post makes me seem young, naive and idealistic. And, well, I am. And you know what? I'm not even embarrassed to admit it anymore. So, I have a dream that one day...

- Racial groups would be accurately represented across occupations and socioeconomic distinctions. Ex. African Americans make up about 14% of the U.S population but only about 6% of U.S. attorneys are black.

- Men and women would stop hating on each other. It's high time we start giving each other the respect we deserve and stop with the blame, insults, and accusations.

- That every child in the U.S. would learn how to read by the time they finish the 2nd grade. Research has shown that if a child does not learn by then they are more likely to have below average test scores, not finish high school, and maybe even never learn to read at all.

- There would be peace in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

- People all over the U.S. would have access to health care. I'm not sure how that happens or what the economic implications are of that. But I do know that everyone ought to be able to get preventative medical care, regardless of how much money they have.

- Girls everywhere would feel valued by the church. This may seem random, but if you know me you know that my heart breaks when i think about the way the church has gotten it wrong when it comes to gender relations. But I think that one day it can be different, it can be better.

I hope you took some time to dream today.

2 comments:

Robyn said...

i like your dreams...i dream them too!

Kelly C said...

This was a very nice post, Shannon. It made me tear up a bit.