MLK & Me

When I was very young, I would often go with my family to Love Field airport in Dallas to drop off or pick up visiting relatives. My father seemed to have a knack for spotting old friends or famous people in the crowds and sometimes we'd have an opportunity to meet someone special.

I remember once we were introduced to a very nice black man. I guess it stuck in my mind (I think I was 3 years old) because we didn't encounter many black people in my white neighborhood in Dallas, Texas. But I remember how my father spoke with such respect as he introduced us. Clearly, this man was somebody special and I was told I would remember meeting him. And I did.

I was much older before all the blanks in my child-like memory were filled in and I realized that that man was Martin Luther King, Jr. He was on his way to a meeting of the Atlanta Pastor's Conference, and my parents told him about my grandfather who would also be there. We later heard that my grandfather did meet him there and when Dr. King heard his name he said, "Oh, I just met your three beautiful grandchildren in Dallas!"

I remembered Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and he remembered me.



*Author's note -- please take a moment to read the comment left by "TheVaryIdea". That's my dad, telling the rest of the story.

My cat, Sebastian

Sebastian has made a brief appearance in this blog once before, in my previous entry about ACEO's but I think it's time to make a formal introduction.

Sebastian and his sister, Snowflake (she'll be the subject of my next entry) were rescued from neglectful next-door neighbors when they were just a few weeks old. We could tell that Sebastian would be the larger of the two, but we didn't know that he would grow into a beautiful Maine Coon cat, or as close as you can get to it without the pedigree.

I always thought Sebastian was a little like a 10-year-old boy. He'd let you pet him, and he'd enjoy it for awhile. But then he'd shake it off and go his own way like a kid wiping off the lipstick kiss of an overbearing distant relative. He was also my watch-cat...yes, like a watch-dog. When he heard someone coming to the door, he'd come running as if to say "Who are you and why are you coming to my house?!"

And when Sebastian was truly satisfied he'd smile. I explained to my daughter that this is the way cats smile...they slowly close and open their eyes. That's all. They'll look right at you, then slowly, their eyes will close and you can almost here them saying "Aahhhhh".

That's what Sebastian was doing when he posed for this first photograph. Oh, he seemed to enjoy having his picture taken when he saw me take out my camera. I did my best to do him justice. I've included photos of the keychains I made with these, too, which are now available in my etsy shop.