John Elliott and Luella May welcome you to the Eleventh Edition of
Women of Courage
Each week we will honor a woman that has truly made a difference by her
contributions, courage, love, and selflessness. Women honored will be chosen from inside AdlandPro, outside AdlandPro, living in the present, and yes, we will not forget those heroines that paved the way for the freedoms we now enjoy. We will honor women who have shown tremendous courage and fortitude against all odds.
Assisting us in coordinating these awards are four outstanding ladies who are Women of Courage in their own right.
Presenting:
LaNell
http://community.adlandpro.com/go/44064/default.aspx
Carla Cash
http://community.adlandpro.com/go/245569/default.aspx
Veronica Davidson
http://community.adlandpro.com/go/vdavidson1972/default.aspx
Joyce Hyde
http://community.adlandpro.com/go/031849/default.aspx
Shirley Caron http://community.adlandpro.com/go/scaronpoet2005/default.aspx
We welcome Mike Caron to our team! Shirley and Mike are our Sweethearts of Courage!
Michael Caron http://community.adlandpro.com/go/192260/default.aspx
And Adlands very own Men of Courage
Georgios Paraskevopoulos http://community.adlandpro.com/go/Genesis/default.aspx
John Partington http://community.adlandpro.com/go/114695/default.aspx
Coretta Scott King
Every now and then in this vast world of ours there stands out an individual that is nothing less than royalty. To me, royalty has nothing to do with lineage, breeding, and so forth. Royalty comes from within. A woman achieves the title of "Royalty" when, against all odds, they rise above every adversity thrown at them, when they present themselves with regal dignity. This was Coretta Scott King.
Behind every great man there is a woman standing by his side cheering him on. But what about Mrs. King? What was she going through as she watched her husband fight so that all men could be equal? Martin Luther King had a dream and Coretta Scott King stood by him every step of the way. She never wavered.
Coretta Scott King shared her husband's dream and selfessly, she put her own hopes and dreams aside to take her husband's hand and forge ahead. She watched her husband give his life to what appeared to be a thankless cause. Her husband suffered in untold ways for the people. His love for all people was so great that he forged on where other men would faint. And Mrs. King by his side. What did she feel as her husband was being so mistreated, slandered, and ridiculed? What did she feel as they were ostracized by humanity? I can imagine she felt great fear, abandonment, sadness, and a myriad of other emotions. This woman that always held her head up high gave us her most precious gift. She gave us her very all. Her husband. Coretta Scott King is one of the greatest ladies in history. But a great lady sometimes lives the saddest of all lives, she lives with a broken heart. I'm sure she also felt pride in how her husband was changing the world. However, the pain must have so outweighed the pride.
There is no greater gift that a man can give than to lay down his life for his fellow man. Martin Luther King loved all people so, that he gave his life so that all men would be free, so that all men would be equal. Coretta Scott King could do nothing else but watch as her husband died for all men.
Mrs. King did not let this dream go. She took over where her husband left off and continued to follow that dream. After Mrs. King gave us her most prized possession, she then gave of herself.
When we think of Dr. Martin Luther King and Mrs. Coretta Scott King, let us not just perceive them as icons in history that changed the world. Yes, this is important. However, Dr. Martin Luther King and Mrs. Coretta Scott King were people, just like you and me. People that gave themselves so that we could live a better life. People with feelings, people needing the same emotional support and love that you and I need. And they got none.
Martin Luther King had a dream. Coretta Scott King took that dream and ran with it. I wish I could say that their dream has come true, but alas, we have so much work yet to be done. You see, this dream could come true tomorrow if man wasn't so selfish. If we truly loved our neighbor each and every one of us, this dream would become a reality. So we still fight for the downtrodden. We go out on the streets to lift them up and tell them, "Don't listen to them! You are someone! You are important! And you will shine!
There are many who still follow this dream for our brothers and sisters. Brothers and sisters has nothing to do with color. We are all one. Let us all hold hands and make Dr. King's and Coretta Scott King's dream come true.
I envision them up in heaven today. They are both looking down on this special day. Dr. King has his arms around Mrs. King. She sadly says, "Honey, look things are better, but your dream is not complete." Gently and with love in his heart he says, "Don't worry baby, it will happen. Look, that one, and that one over there, and this person over in that city, they are working towards our dream. Our lives were not in vain. Dreams do come true.
Love to all,
Luella May