Martin Luther King, Jr.

"For sure he was my contemporary.

I knew him – tho’ he didn’t know me.

I wasn’t as old as he was when he died.

I had a spouse and 2 children when he died.

He had a spouse and 4 children when he died.

I watched my family grow, move on, love life.

He has been gone more years than I had lived when he died

I’ve always thought,

Someone emotionally opposed to MLK,

To his dream of equality for all,

Opposed to his work to gain justice where injustice thrived,

To his leadership helping wherever able,

Opposed to him living daily to benefit others,

A hate-filled person killed Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Dr. King’s non-violent mantra,

Action, never just words,

Forced America forward. 

Thus on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day,

We honor all he accomplished.

He lost his life. 

Yet he lives on.

May it always be so."
                                         - M. L.  Stith