Martin Luther King Jr.

Today is the 50th anniversary of the death of Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Dr. King’s life is not a new subject for me. I put his name in my own search box and it shows up in 43 different posts.

Here’s the photo I used September 5, 2011. This book was a gift from my friend, Lydia, and it is the most meaningful book I have read. I highly recommend it. And here’s my post from six years ago.

Why We Can’t Wait was about the year 1963, published 1964, still in print today. MLK was 34 years old, and already knew three Presidents in person. His Letter from a Birmingham Jail is in the book, and he talks about some early mentors in the movement, going back to his 20s.

Dr. King’s youth is what always strikes me. He died before he was 40.

Most of my associations today are with “old-timers” from the days of Vietnam, back when we were young.

Dr. King is frozen in time. For us time has moved on.

Today, 50 years after Martin Luther King Jrs death, there will be endless analyses of what his life and death meant.

What I see, as a still very active senior citizen, is that the torch has basically been passed, as it should be, to the youth.

We have a role, as elders, to inform and to provide resources, to those who follow us.

But young people, like the Parkland students, are the Martin Luther King’s of our time.

And Martin Luther King and many others made a huge difference, and so will these youngsters of our generation.