MLK and Streetsweepers

If a man is called to be a street sweeper,
he should sweep streets even as a Michaelangelo painted,
or Beethoven composed music or Shakespeare wrote poetry.

He should sweep streets so well
that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say,
"Here lived a great street sweeper who did his job well."

― Martin Luther King Jr. ―

Sweeping The Street

As we continue sharing some older posts, last weekend my wife and I fixed up the area around our mail box. With the dirt and mess, we ended up having to sweep the street. It reminded me of a favorite of mine by the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.

If a man is called to be a street sweeper
He should sweep streets even as Michelangelo painted
Or Beethoven composed music
Or Shakespeare wrote poetry

He should sweep streets so well
That all the hosts of heaven and earth
Will pause to say
Here lived a great street sweeper
Who did his job well

~Martin Luther King, Jr~

This is one of my favorite quotes that I share with you today. You can make a difference every day simply by doing what you do, to the best ability that you can.

Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr

The Martin Luther King Memorial. Credit: Charles Dharapak/AP



"Take the first step in faith. You don't have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step." -Martin Luther King, Jr.

On Sunday, August 28, 2011 a memorial will be dedicated in Washington, D.C. It is a memorial inspired from Rev. King's "I Have a Dream" speech, "Out of the mountain of despair, a stone of hope."

There is the inevitable controversy that surrounds any major project of which I'm not going to go back over. The memorial is here and it stands as a great reminder of what our great country has come through. And while we still struggle today with racial equality and understanding, a change occurred those many years ago.

I have to think Reverend King would be pleased that we continue to talk to each other. He would be glad to know that we keep constructing the path he started to lay for all of us. While his dream is not completely fulfilled, he opened that hole in the wall which divided us. It is through this opening that we continue the dialog. It is through this opening that we reach out to each other.

Our differences in race, religion and ideology will continue to try and tear us apart as humans. We must continue to fight any efforts to close the wall of difference and divide us again. We must continue to work at tearing down forever that wall for all peoples.

On August 28, 1963, standing in front of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C. a dream was revealed. The Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. had a dream which continues to inspire today. Dream our dreams, but we must act upon those dreams and one day all will realize those dreams.

Greatness Inside

"When I chased after money, I never had enough. When I got my life on purpose and focused on giving of myself and everything that arrived into my life, then I was prosperous." ~Wayne Dyer

In the news lately has been the pending decision of Lebron James, basketball superstar. He is in free agency and everyone is awaiting his decision regarding where he will play next year. Will he stay in Cleveland; will he go to Chicago; will he land in Miami? All of these questions will be answered.

What I have found interesting is the talk of money. And it is a lot of money they are talking about. Roughly $16 million per year to play a game, albeit very well. And I am not here to question "how much is too much" or try to say that no one is worth that kind of money. There are thousands upon thousands of people that have mind-boggling amounts of money.

In the talk of a possible contract, it was stated it might be $15 million or maybe $16 million. The people reporting state that $1 million dollars won't make the difference because it is "only $1 million dollars" we are talking about. Maybe not in the context of his contract, but it is an amount that could make a huge difference to others. Heck, I'll sign up to take it if he doesn't get it. But then I can only jump six inches off the ground and maybe get up and down a basketball court only once or twice.

It is the pursuit of money and what you do with it that makes a difference in this life. I contend and hope for everyone that you make as much of those mind-boggling amounts of money as you can. Yet what I truly hope is that you do something good with those amounts of money.

I wouldn't suggest you give it all away and I wouldn't suggest how you spend on things in your life. We all spend up to our means which is just fine. What I hope for is that you can do something for those less fortunate. For those that do not have the means to achieve. You setting up a program for learning, for improving life for those may just birth greatness out of others. It will certainly birth greatness in you.

So go out and make mind-boggling amounts of money. Each of you have the capacity to do so. Each of you have the ability to do great things. All I ask in return is you give back a little to others to make a difference in their lives. Then you will truly be great, then you will be a king inside.

Sweeping Streets

If a man is called to be a street sweeper
He should sweep streets even as Michelangelo painted
Or Beethoven composed music
Or Shakespeare wrote poetry

He should sweep streets so well
That all the hosts of heaven and earth
Will pause to say
Here lived a great street sweeper
Who did his job well

~Martin Luther King, Jr~

This is one of my favorite quotes that I share with you today. You can make a difference every day simply by doing what you do, to the best ability that you can.