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The COVID-19 pandemic continues even as we begin 2021. While the new vaccine offers new hope, it will take time to administer it to enough people before it is safe to stop following protective guidelines. We can safely assume that we will need to continue to wear masks, wash their hands frequently and practice social distancing well into 2021, which means everyone will need to plan their events with these guidelines in mind.
Martin Luther King Jr. Day is on Monday January 18, 2021. Americans have set aside this day to honor the memory of this great civil rights icon and social prophet. For many the weekend before MLK Day is a time of celebration, community outreach and continued advocacy for justice. Although we may not be able to observe the holiday in all the same ways we might have pre-COVID. There are, however, still many ways we can honor Dr. King’s memory and witness in 2021 while still keeping our community members safe.
Today, let us ask ourselves what Dr. King believed to be life’s most urgent and persistent question: “What are you doing for others?”
Dr. King said, “Everybody can be great…because anybody can serve. You don’t have to be famous. You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love.”
This is the essence of service, the key ingredient that both inspires and sustains us to serve.
The big thing, for me, is that service not only helps the person designated as being in need, but it also helps us. What they gain is usually easily defined, based on what you did to help them, or the need you filled. What we get as the helpers is harder to define, but I believe it goes back to keeping our hearts and souls filled with grace and love.
If we do not serve with our heart and soul, it is not the service that Dr. King envisioned and it will fail to move us in the direction that he marched toward.
The MLK Holiday gives us all another opportunity to reaffirm and reflect on our appreciation for the uniqueness that each individual brings to the City of West Park. So, on this holiday of celebrating Dr. King ask yourself how are you contributing to uplifting people and their consciousness in the understanding that we are all here to help and to love one another? For by doing this, we not only honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and his legacy – we honor ourselves and future generations.
There is no real limit to what we can do to help others. Remember, service is the price you pay for the space you occupy.
Remember to contact me at City Hall with your ideas, suggestions or concerns. I represent you and appreciate your input on the continued success of our beloved city. I can be reached at my city office at: 954-989-2688, Ext. 214; or at 954-329-8990, or by email at: fbrunson@cityofwestpark.org.
Let’s get to work! We are #ONEWESTPARK !
