Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place. But I’m not concerned about that now. I just want to do God’s will. And [God]’s allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I’ve looked over. And I’ve seen the Promised Land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight, that we, as a people, will get to the promised land!
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop,” April 3, 1968
If you were taking a final journey with your closest friends, where would you go? Who or what would you take with you?
I’d gather up my brother and some other family members and go back to the cemeteries where five generations of my family lie beside each other. I’d remember, along with the others, where we came from and all the memories we have. We’d laugh and share and pick a few grassburrs out of our shoes and it would be a good day.