Glory Hallelujah :)

I can't think of any better way to start the day than going to the Ebeneezer Baptist Church for the morning service. The people there were the most genuinely welcoming that I have ever met, and it was incredible that the entire first portion of the service was dedicated to their glorious songs and all members of the congregation coming over to shake our hands. There weren't as many people in the congregation as I thought there would be, but from the perspective of the reverend, the thin patches of ice outside were a big deal and prevented a lot of people from coming out to the service. The minister was THE most enthusiastic preacher I've ever heard, and the energy that came from him echoed throughout the church and reverberated in the choir and every member of the congregation. The church really is the center of the community for them all.

Unfortunately, I didn't get a chance to go on the Martin Luther King, Jr. Birthplace tour, but the MLK Visitor Center shared a lot of good information and perspectives in its place. Seeing his and Coretta Scott King's tomb was also quite impacting.

The Birmingham Civil Rights Institute was incredible. Walking through for two and a half hours was not enough time to take it all in, but it was amazing to read about the court cases and stories of the individual contributors to the Civil Rights movement. I didn't have as much time to explore Kelly Ingram Park as I would have liked, but walking through the statue with the dogs jumping out of the marble was really emotionally impacting to me. They were only statues, but it still had a degree of terror to it; I cannot imagine what it must have been like for the real foot soldiers, with real police dogs jumping out and attacking them.

Also, I LOVE Golden Corral! It puts Old Country Buffet and Ponderosa to shame.


"Weebles wobble...but they don't fall down. It's what's within them that keeps them popping right back up." --Rev. Raphael G. Warnock

"Life's most persistent and urgent question is, what are YOU doing for others?" --Martin Luther King, Jr.

"I have nothing new to teach the world. Truth and non-violence are as old as the hills." --Gandhi

"Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere." --Martin Luther King, Jr.