Martin Luther King Day and Inauguration Day coinciding today is thought-provoking. However, I’m going to avoid trying to make clumsily profound observations and simply continue reflecting on Dr. King’s message of hope, thinking of what we can do, what we can be, and how we can come together.
I have the song Abraham, Martin and John in my head today. My parents loved that song, and so do I. It harnesses the sorrow and the hopefulness that Dr. King embodied, and the juxtaposition of tragedy and legacy we will forever associate with the four difference-makers the song honors: Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King, John F. Kennedy and Bobby Kennedy. The song speaks for me—and to me—today.
Abraham, Martin and John lyrics
Anybody here seen my old friend Abraham?
Can you tell me where he's gone?
He freed lotta people but it seems the good they die young
You know I just looked around and he's gone
Anybody here seen my old friend John?
Can you tell me where he's gone?
He freed lotta people but it seems the good they die young
I just looked around and he's gone
Anybody here seen my old friend Martin?
Can you tell me where he's gone?
He freed lotta people but it seems the good they die young
I just looked around and he's gone
Didn't you love the things that they stood for?
Didn't they try to find some good for you and me?
And we'll be free
Some day soon, it's gonna be one day
Anybody here seen my old friend Bobby?
Can you tell me where he's gone?
I thought I saw him walkin' up over the hill
With Abraham, Martin, and John
Source: Musixmatch
Songwriters: Richard Louis Holler
Abraham, Martin and John lyrics © Stonehenge Music, Primary Wave 3 Songs
Hope
“We must accept finite disappointment but never lose infinite hope.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
Happy MLK Day, my friends. Hope springs eternal.
© 2024, Glover Gardens
I didn’t know that song. We definitely need hope. Can’t bring myself to look at any of the news today.
Same! And just a warning, if you listen to the recording on YouTube, you might be moved to tears. it’s really haunting.
Thank you Kim. I didn’t know that song. I guess they’re not gone. Some still remember them. A bit like my grandfather I guess. Till my older brother and I are still alive, he will live on…
Same goes for John, Bobby and Dr. King…
You’re right… if they’re in memory for one of us, or one million, or one hundred million, they’re not gone at all. But it’s up to us to keep those ideals alive, isn’t it? Great point about your grandfather, too – I absolutely understand about keeping our loved ones in the forefront of memory, tradition, and even in the moral compass area (my Dad).
Thank you for the comments, my friend!
Yes. It is. Up to us. To… keep those ideas alive. I’ve been wondering about ways to write about it… Drawing a blank which seldom happens to me… In this day and age of fast oblivion, I’m not sure how to write about it… Except for quick short stories, even non-fiction as this one… I’ll keep mulling…
Be good Kim.
I have a similar writer’s block… but we’ll get there!
Yes, we will…