Our Time in Atlanta - Part 3

Procrastination! I need to figure out a way to keep you out of my new year resolutions. I meant to finish posting the pictures of our Atlanta trip but kept wasting my time on Pinterest. Anyway, without further delay Atlanta continues!!

Sunday was the last day of our car rental and once again we tried to make the most of it. Church was the first stop on the list. I am usually the only chocolate chip in the cookie when I go to church but, this ward had the most assorted gathering I had seen in a long time. There wasn't a dominant race just a group of people gathered to worship. Technically, I am no suppose to take pictures in the chapel but I couldn't help it. 

Next stop was the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site. It was emotional to walk in the building to the recording of the "I have a dream" speech while holding Shadd. The constant smiles and the polite nod of approval of the other visitors made me realize they must have felt it too. We are getting to the dream, slowly but we are getting there. 

Since we did not make it on time to tour the inside of the home, we settled with taking a few pictures in front of the house.

I normally do not participate in controversial discussions but I will just this time. Many of the racial problems we still face are based on the awkward "what do we do now" phase. It's like bumping into someone who knows you saw them pick their nose and eat it. You may try to say something to be friendly but end up sounding like you are getting ready to march with a pitch fork. 

Sometimes, comments are made without ever intending to be racist but rather out of sheer nervousness or awkwardness.  Haile Selassie I has the solution to that problem. He said, "... Until the color of a man's skin is of no more significance than the color of his eyes- it's war"  I love it!!!!  It solves the comments problem. Examples:

#1  "You have blue eyes so you must be good at dancing/skateboarding etc." makes no sense, right? So it does not work with skin color either.

#2   "That brown eyes girl over there"... I don't see anything wrong with that. So go ahead say it "Which one, the black guy?" No need to be all weird. 

#3 "I have lots of friends with green eyes, I think they are cool people" yep, that's another ludicrous comment. 

Anyway, you get what I mean. We need to stop thinking too much about stereotypes and just start focusing on the individual. With that said, I'm done preaching. 

 In summary,  we had lots of fun in Atlanta and I would not be opposed to going there again someday. I even met a Haitian lady in the Atlanta ward and you know me I just had to make a friend. 

PS.  I almost forgot. We saw a sweet proposal at the park and decided to take a picture even if such behavior may be questionable. We then decided to congratulate them and text them the picture, they seemed grateful. I guess not so creepy after all.