There Is More Than One King In Memphis

My Afternoon with a Kings Dream took place on July 22nd, 2021 while on the tail end of my 40-day cross country trip I found myself in Memphis, TN for the second day in a row. I had Drove through the night from Houston, TX on July 20th so that I could spend my birthday on July 21st with the Kings of Memphis. Early in the day, I made my way to Graceland to encounter what I can only describe as the Myrtle Beach of Celebrity Estates, take that however you would like! My plan was to head to The Lorraine Motel home of the National Civil Rights Museum and famed location of the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.  Unfortunately the Museum was closed that day so I spent the rest of the Day exploring Memphis and ending it on Beale st. eating the finest Memphis BBQ accompanied by the sounds of the raw blues that the city is known to sing out throughout the evening. So I purchased my tickets to go to the museum as soon as they opened the next day, because of covid you had to repurchase your time slot and this was one of the advantages of traveling solo, I almost always found a way to purchase one ticket and this time was no different. 

The American Dream is a little Nightmarish!

When you enter the museum you instantly emerge into the history of our society that was built off of the back of slavery. It’s an honest conversation that is presented with facts and artifacts that instantly remind us of the truth and oftentimes blind truth we associate with the constructs of this country. There is no sugar coating the brutality that the men, women, and children faced during this dark stain on American history, and it is put on full display.

“Letter from Birmingham Jail” was snuck out of the prison in 1963. Read the full letter HERE.

A Man Becomes A King

King participated in and led marches for blacks’ right to vote, desegregation, labor rights, and other basic civil rights becoming the most visible spokesman and leader in the American civil rights movement.

Martin Luther King Jr. was arrested in Birmingham, Alabama in 1963.

“justice too long delayed is justice denied”- Martin Luther King Jr. 

One Man Can Change The World

While I began to fully emerge myself into the life and impact of Dr. King I had a revelation that has and will forever change how I see Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. I have to believe after all I have read and all that I saw that day at The Lorraine, that Martin Luther King Jr. Knew that he would never see the day that the change he fought for would become a reality. This humble approach to change from a man who, with devotion pledged his life to instill the hope and freedom that all men deserve for generations that were not even alive while he was doing his work. I can’t think of a greater, more honest approach to change with such a selfless form of purity.

Martin Luther King was a Man, a leader, a visionary, a warrior, but most importantly Martin Luther King Jr. Represents the best of what man can become. Taking nothing away from him, King was a man no more or less qualified to stand up and speak out for what he believed in than any other man or woman alive. But its in this fact that he was able to take on that  burden of speaking up  for others that we remember him. 

Death Of A King

The view from the balcony outside of room 306 where King was standing looking down onto the street below and where he was ultimately shot and killed. 

A View into room 306 at The Lorraine Motel where Martin Luther King Jr. and his friends were staying. It was outside of this room on the balcony where King would be assassinated. The Museum has kept the room trapped in time set up to look like it did on that faithful day. 

“ALL OF IT WAS GONE”

On Thursday, April 4th, 1968, Martin Luther King Jr. Was assassinated while standing on the balcony outside of his room at The Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee. This experience of walking through the historical events of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. life and untimely death on location in real-time was by far one of the most emotional experiences of my life. I cannot bring myself to even acknowledge the man who killed him and stole a King of Dreams from a world that desperately needs that vision.

View from the parking lot at street level looking up at the balcony where Dr. Martin Luther King Was assassinated. The Wreath marks the spot where he was standing. The plaque in place is set to memorialize the location where King was murdered. 

“LET US SLAY HIM AND WE SHALL SEE WHAT WILL BECOME OF HIS DREAM”

As I stood there leaning up against a plexiglass wall looking into the bathroom with a cracked open window I felt sick to my stomach. That window sill is where the gunman laid in wait to take the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. As I stood there i felt dirty taking these photos as i started to boil over with rage towards the man who killed King and everyone and everything that he stood for. It was in that shift of emotions where I was met with the compassion that Martin Luther King Stood for. Not to excuse the actions of a man or to permeate the ideology of turning the cheek, but rather that no man or institution should be able to have that amount of power over our emotions, our rights, or our lives. 

The View from across the street where the assassin took the fatal shot. from a bathroom window. The Wreath represents where Martin Luther King Jr. was standing when he was assassinated. 

It was a bullet that brought King to his knees, but make no mistake it was Hate that killed him. 

Michael Rolon Michael Rolon Warrior Of Impact

Warrior Of Impact

Michael Rolon is the Owner/founder of Warrior Of Impact Coaching and works directly with individuals looking to find their purpose in life and he helps them make a greater impact. As a Full-Time single Dad and Entrepreneur, Michael is passionate about serving single parents, current and would-be entrepreneurs, and current and future leaders. For more information or to schedule a consult check out our contact page: https://michaelrolon.com/contact/

A Kings Dream 

We to this day are surrounded by the same prejudice and division amongst us that Dr. King himself tried to irradicate. My hope is that in our lifetime we will see Dr. Kings Dream become a reality.

 

That we will see the day when all of God’s children will be able to sing with new meaning: My country, ’tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing. Land where my fathers died, land of the pilgrims’ pride, from every mountainside, let freedom ring.