Legacy

My grandaddy was a Pentecostal preacher in the deep south.

He held tent revival meetings in the 40s and 50s and faced violent opposition–not because of his message, but because his meetings were open to people of EVERY race. My dad has a vivid memory from early childhood of his father bringing home and ministering to a fellow preacher who had been beaten nearly to death by the KKK.

This is my heritage.

My dad, too, became a preacher, but he also served three terms in Georgia’s House of Representatives. He took political stands on many moral and social issues and faced violent opposition, but it wasn’t until he joined a bipartisan initiative to remove the Confederate “stars and bars” from Georgia’s state flag that he started getting death threats. One message warned him that, should he persist, “the blood of his daughters would run down the cul-de-sac” (revealing that the sender of said missive knew a) that my father had daughters, and b) that we lived on a cul-de-sac). My dad stood firm.

This is my legacy.

I am grateful for my heritage. I am proud of my legacy.

But that is not enough.

I cannot say I am grateful for my heritage unless I am building upon it. I cannot take pride in my legacy unless I am participating in it.

I am not a preacher. I am not a politician. I am a writer–and so, I will write.

I cannot tell the story of what it means to be a person of color in this country. That is not my story to tell. What I can do is seek out those stories, educate myself regarding them, and immerse myself in them, that their truth may seep into every story I write, informing and transforming each word into a tent in which all are welcome: a haven wherein all may discover their home in The Story–the one tale from which all other tales spring–and be renewed by Wonder to live in love.

To wit, here’s another podcast I am investigating: 1619 Project

I also earnestly recommend the films Just Mercy and Selma, along with the documentary 13th. 

Thank you for being part of this journey, friends. 

Let’s keep listening.