My plans for a day revolving around Martin Luther King Jr and the civil rights movement went out the door last night as Camryn burned upwith fever. I got myself to the doctor this morning knowing I would need to get myself better if I was going to take care of sick kids all week. Got some meds. (Bronchitis. Lovely.) Then spent most of the day holding a puny Camryn as she dozed on and off. I caved and gave her Motrin at some point and she started to come around and allow me to put her down for a bit. At that time I broke out my laptop and you-tubed MLK’s "I Have A Dream" speech.
Ben and Kate have been studying Martin Luther King Jr in school. But I really wanted them to hear the entire speech, read the speech and then have a chance to talk about it and what it all meant. Here’s a little glimpse of what went down in the kitchen today:
Katie “MLK was shot in another country because they didn’t like what he said”
Ben “No, Katie it was our country. But not in our state.”
Kate: “A white man shot him, right mama?”
Me “Yes, that’s right”
Ben “Because the white man didn’t want the laws to change?”
Me “Yeah, pretty much. There were a lot of people who didn’t want things to change. They were happy with the way things were and didn’t believe in the things that MLK believed.”
Ben “Were white people stupid back then?” (He was completely serious.)
Me (trying not to laugh) “Some might have been considered stupid but most were ignorant, not knowing any different, others were scared and some just didn’t agree with what he was trying to do.”
Ben “I’m glad he changed things.”
Me “Me too Ben, he was a very important person in the making of our country”
Katie “I have a dream. A dream where I live in a land of candy”
And that was the end of our conversation.
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