In Honor of Dr. Martin Luther King

by Betsy Ashton

Betsy Ashton, born in Washington, DC, was raised in Southern California where she ran wild with coyotes in the hills above Malibu. She protested the war in Vietnam, burned her bra for feminism, and is a steadfast Independent. She is a writer, a thinker, the mother of three grown stepchildren, companion and friend. She mentors writers and writes and publishes fiction. Her first mystery, Mad Max Unintended Consequences, was published in February 2013. The second in the series, Uncharted Territory, A Mad Max Mystery, came out in April 2015. In her spare time, she is the president of the state-wide Virginia Writers Club. She loves riding behind her husband on his motorcycle. You’ll have to decide for yourself if and where she has a tattoo.

Featured | Martin Luther King | Poetry | Writing

2 Comments(s)

January 16, 2017

The following poem is one I run every year at this time. I usually read it at events honoring Dr. King, but I had to turn down invitations this year to go on vacation with my husband.

With apologies to those who might find this too political.

STONE OF HOPE, 2011

Granite statue gazes outward,

seeks proof the dream

continues

 I have a dream

looks for footprints

on the path to freedom

that one day on the red hills of Georgia

laments ridicule of a president

with the audacity to dream

 the sons of former slaves

sees a country

broken by religious hatred

and the sons of former slave owners

hears uncivil discord not

peaceful civil disobedience

will be able to sit down together

wonders what happened

to embracing differences

at the table of brotherhood.

abandons hope of government

for all people.

I had a dream.

Granite statue gazes outward and weeps.

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2 Comments

  1. Mary Clark
    Mary Clark on January 22, 2017 at 10:58 pm

    Our path to freedom and respect is a rough road, across frozen terrain, along the edges of cliffs, through mud, in fog and gales, darkness and blinding light. Keep trekking.

    • Betsy Ashton
      Betsy Ashton on January 25, 2017 at 7:18 pm

      Without being flip (or not too flip at least), in the words of the immortal Bilbo Baggins, “the road goes ever on and on.” We take each step at a time and make progress.