Monuments

A new Martin Luther King, Jr. monument is now on the Washington Mall.  It’s large. It’s grand. It’s powerful. But it’s not as powerful as much smaller monument to him nearby.

That monument is just  four words and a date etched into a granite step.

Those four words are, of course, “I have a dream” and the date is August 28, 1963. That’s when Dr. King gave his powerful 17-minute speech during the March on Washington.  And that step is one of the Lincoln Memorial’s steps.  From that step, Dr. King continued the work that Abe Lincoln began 100 years previously.   The words mark the very spot where he gave the speech.  Lincoln’s statute is watching it from behind.

My sons and I stood on that spot and looked out at the Mall. The world has changed since 1963.  And that small but powerful monument was a reminder of just how much.