Martin Luther King Day

It can't be just another day off. He wasn't just another famous figure from history.

He was brave, he was a leader, he was a strategist, he was a bold thinker. He was a scholar, a family man, an orator. But it wasn't about his charisma, his learning, his hard work, not even about his life, inspirational as it was. It's not even about his tragic death.

for me, it's all about the words.
It's about the words.

Yes Hilary, you are right, someone has to do the work behind the scenes. Yes, Lyndon Johnson's political savvy and tenaiciousness gave the words the weight of law.

But someone had to speak the words, to put the truth into some coherent form, into a message that others could hear, and even more importantly, a message to which people could respond, reply, and rally.

As a child, I remember being mesmerized by the cadences of MLK's speeches. The rolling structure, the lows and the highs, and the build-up to the final crescendo, wherein the power of the message was released. If I had been raised in a black church, some of this might have been familiar to me. Instead, to me and to probably many other little white kids growing up in suburbia, this was a new style, almost a new language.

King's voice was so in tune with the words, that if you read them today, you can hear him in the text.

Here is one of Martin Luther King's speeches that is uncannily appropriate to these times.

So any honoring of MLK that I do, has to pay tributes to his words, written and spoken. So I re-read some of the speeches, and then I spent most of the afternoon sledding with my buddies Libby and Leilei. For story time we read some childrens' books about the Civil Rights Movement and Martin Luther King. I sighed when Libby commented (and not for the first time): "I wish my skin was white. I don't like being so tan." I have a dream that someday she will see herself as I see her--absolutely beautiful from head to toe, including that gorgeous golden skin.

It wasn't just another day off, but a peaceful, happy, thoughtful day.

Happy Tenth Day of Christmas!

Traditionally (and I am nothing if not traditional) the Ninth, Tenth, and Eleventh Days of Christmas are a time of spiritual renewal, a time for planning. Thus, I am celebrating in solitary comfort. Libby and Leilei are back at school. I will go back to work on Monday. But for now, I must continue to keep Christmas. Tradition, you know.



It is also the Feast of Saint Genevieve. I'm very fond of her.



Here are some of my highlights of 2007:



1. Most memorable theatrical event: There were two. One was seeing rising star Nora Haggerty as one of the King of Siam's children in The King and I. The other was seeing the Actor's Shakespeare Project production of Macbeth, performed by an all female cast.



2. Best book read: Ha Jin's A Free Life. It is a story that reminds me of Roth's Call it Sleep, not in its structure at all, but because both books are about the experience of being an immigrant, trying to navigate a new culture in an unfamiliar language, and knowing that you are being perceived as "other". Kind of how I feel in Chinatown, only I can always escape a few streets away, where English is the main language.



3. Most memorable celebration: the Harry Potter hooha. That was fun!



4. Best film seen: I'm Not There (courtesy of Ed, who had a preview copy.) Kind of about Bob. He's not there. Enough said.



5. Most excellent adventure: Horseback riding with Sarah.



6. Other most excellent adventure: Going car free.



7. Most purely joyful day: a day at Horseneck Beach with Libby and Leilei. We had camped on the beach the night before, which was ok, but made Leilei a little scared and lonely. We did see a baby bunny come out of the grasses and approach our campfire, and that was nice. But in general, it wasn't comfortable, and I kept thinking WHY did I do this????? But the next day was beautiful, and we spent the whole day making sandcastles or jumping in the waves.



8. Happiest reunion: Getting together with Ann G again! We had dinner in the summer, then got together with Dave a few months later. I missed her so, and hope we can stay in better touch in 2008.



I think if there was a theme for my year it was "enjoy". I didn't have any momentous accomplishments or changes in my life. I spent my first full year as Leilei's mom, and that was enjoyable indeed.



I'm not sure yet what my 2008 theme will be. Of course the theme might turn out to be completely different from the theme I create for the year. My stated theme for 2007 was "pray hard!" I guess if taking pleasure and satisfaction in ones life is a form of prayer, that I pretty much lived up to it.



Reading over this I feel the faintest tinge of guilt that I should be so happy when others so close to me are miserable. I wish I could share my happiness, but it is a very hard thing to spread to other people if they aren't open to it. I think it makes some people a bit irritated that I am this happy, when I have so many obvious problems and flaws. But, as Bob says, "I can't help it if I'm lucky."



If I don't yet have a theme, I do have some goals: Write a book. Go to the Beijing Olympics. Finalize Leilei's adoption.

And the usual: Reflect, laugh, listen to music. Exercise every day. Be with my friends and family as often as possible. Eat mindfully. Those are the givens, things I always try to do. For something new though: in general, less input, more output. I'm always running around trying to cram as much in my mind/mouth/life as possible. So maybe "temperance" should be my theme for 2008. God, that sounds boring. But I mean maybe read less, write more. Less talk, more action.

Oh, and get up early, or at least on time!

And keep my room clean!