MLK Day: “‘What are you doing for others?’”

Today is Martin Luther King Jr. Day. I deeply admire and am inspired by the life, work, and legacy of Dr. King, and thus am trying to spend time using this holiday as it was intended, to reflect on Dr. King’s work and the continual challenges of civil rights, justice, and equality that America faces.

Coretta Scott King, the late wife of Dr. King, wrote a compelling essay on “The Meaning of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday,” which is published on website for the King Center. The essay begins:

“The Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday celebrates the life and legacy of a man who brought hope and healing to America. We commemorate as well the timeless values he taught us through his example -- the values of courage, truth, justice, compassion, dignity, humility and service that so radiantly defined Dr. King’s character and empowered his leadership. On this holiday, we commemorate the universal, unconditional love, forgiveness and nonviolence that empowered his revolutionary spirit…

…We call you to commemorate this Holiday by making your personal commitment to serve humanity with the vibrant spirit of unconditional love that was his greatest strength, and which empowered all of the great victories of his leadership. And with our hearts open to this spirit of unconditional love, we can indeed achieve the Beloved Community of Martin Luther King, Jr.’s dream.”

Mrs. King eloquently captures the essence of this day in honor of her husband’s work, sacrifice, and steadfast belief in equality, justice, and respect for all people.

In honor of this holiday, Duke hosted an advanced screening of Freedom Riders, a moving documentary that chronicles the incredible story of the Freedom Riders, a group of college students and young people who in 1961 rode in inter-racial groups on public buses throughout the South in order to challenge the system of segregation and see if their constitutional rights would be upheld. This is a film that I am particularly excited about not only because it is deeply intertwined with my work in the Mississippi Delta this past summer, but also because I have applied to “get on the bus” this May as one of 40 college students honoring and continuing the work of the Freedom Riders by retracing the route of the original Freedom Rides with Freedom Riders themselves. I encourage you to view the documentary trailer and learn more about the Freedom Rides on the film’s website. The documentary will be airing on PBS in May.

“Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, ‘what are you doing for others?’”

-Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

As I said, this weekend my mind has been wandering back to the Mississippi Delta and my experiences there. Here are a few pictures from the summer that I think are worth sharing, today on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. day:

(Please note that unless otherwise mentioned, all photos from this blog were taken by me and are my personal photos).

This is the balcony where Dr. King was shot at the Loraine Motel in Memphis. The motel is now home to the National Civil Rights Museum, which I visited this summer.

These are the remnants of the infamous store in Money, Mississippi where 13-year-old Emmett Till whistled at a white woman.

The flat, lush, endless fields of the Delta

Moving into Land of the Tar Heels

My first week as a Tar Heel is coming to a close, and it has been great so far!

I really like UNC. As a Duke student and Cameron Crazy, I am not suppose to say that, but it’s true. Both schools are fantastic, top quality academic institutions with a commitment to North Carolina and strong (rival) sports programs. That being said, they are very different. Duke is private; UNC is public. Duke has about 13,000 students, while UNC has about 29,000 students. Duke’s physical campus is somewhat separate from Durham, while UNC sprawls out into Chapel Hill. Duke’s campus is full of gothic architecture, while UNC’s campus has lots of brick buildings and green space. The schools feel distinctly different from each other, but I am happy to say that I am starting to feel comfortable at both.

Earlier this week, we had an orientation for the Duke Robertson Scholars on switch. A member of the Robertson staff described this year (sophomore spring – junior fall) as a “year of dissonance, ” as this is a year about being thrown into unusual and challenging situations.

In order to have a successful transition to an UNC (or any new place), you really need to have a positive attitude. To put it bluntly, switch is hard. Just as we were all getting really comfortable at our home campuses, we come to a new school at an unusual time, half way through the year when everyone else is settled and has their group of friends. However, switch is an amazing opportunity to experience another university. Being open and willing to meet new people and try new things has made my transition much smoother.

I can’t remember ever having such an easy time meeting people. The people I have met at UNC have been really friendly. I also have been more outgoing than I usually am, not worrying about introducing myself to people or asking questions when I don’t know something. One of my goals for the semester is to talk to at least two new people every day, which has not been a problem at all thus far.

When talking to a new friend on Thursday, I said we, referring to myself as a Carolina student. My friend got very excited and pointed out that I had referred to myself as a Carolina student. I guess that is a sign that I am starting to fit in here J

“Not in his goals, but in his transitions is a man great.”

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

Before heading back to North Carolina, Lauren made some delicious UNC themed cookies for me.

2011: New Year, New Roads

 Happy 2011! I have decided to start this New Year with a blog to chronicle 2011, a year that will be filled with exploration. The blog title is inspired by one of my favorite poems The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost. The final stanza of the poem states,

“I shall be telling this with a sigh

Somewhere ages and ages hence:

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I-

I took the one less traveled by

And that has made all the difference.”

Frost artfully describes diverse opportunities, the challenge of considering choices, the courage needed to take chances, and the moments and choices that matter. He captures the possibility and the difficulty of choosing paths, as well as the beauty of the choice. It is with new roads and this spirit of thoughtful choice, hope, and possibility that I begin this year and this blog.  

This year for me will be about differences, starting with two different shades of blue: deep, royal Duke blue and light sky Carolina blue. I am a part of the Robertson Scholars Program, an incredible scholarship and leadership development program created by Julian Robertson and his family that supports students at Duke and UNC Chapel Hill. As a part of this program, Robertson Scholars have “dual citizenship” at both universities, and during the spring of our sophomore year, we all switch campuses and live at our “sister campus.” So when I finished exams at the end of December, I packed up my room and moved out of Duke. My new dorm at UNC is down 15-501, exactly 10.2 miles away. This may not seem very far, but the distance is in some ways substantial, particularly during basketball season.  

I invite you to join me this year. My journey begins today in Massachusetts and will take me to Chapel Hill, Durham, Costa Rica, South Africa, and Ecuador, among other places J

2011: New year, new roads, and countless new friends and opportunities….

A beautiful cranberry bog in Cape Cod near my grandparents' house