Message From The Divine

And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers,

So,

Listen to the God in me as He teaches me to teach you.

Through His teaching, we are divinely inspired so this is the
DIVINE EXPRESSION


Tuesday, April 20, 2010

The Embodiment of Change: Dr. Dorothy Height


Dr. Dorothy Irene Height, who I affectionately call "Dorothy Irene," has rested from her labor today. In Dr. Mary McLeod-Bethune's last will and testament these words are transcribed,


I leave you love... I leave you hope.
I leave you the challenge of developing confidence in one another.
I leave you a thirst for education.
I leave you a respect for the use of power.
I leave you faith.
I leave you racial dignity.
I leave you a desire to live harmoniously with your fellow man.
I leave you, finally, a responsibility to our young people.

These words were from Dr. Bethune but they are also applicable to the venerable Dr. Height. For she leaves us all these things and more.

Dr. Height's leaving has left a void as wide as a sea in my heart. She was my very first role model. The very first woman I looked up to. I mean, she had done so much and accomplished so much more than I revered her. When I read "In Search of Sisterhood," her name stood out. See, Dr. Height was the president of Delta Sigma Theta for nine years. Yes, nine. And I do believe Delta has a one-term limit. And then she became president of the National Council of Negro Women for about forty years. You see, Dr. Height was the quintessential leader. She not only worked for change, but she worked with change-agents. She marched alongside Dr. King, she listened to Malcolm, she was even escorted onto the platform when our current President, Barack Obama, was inaugurated. She saw it all in her 98 years of not just life, but living.

She did more than talk about "being the change," she was the change.

I was at inauguration with her. I was nowhere near her but I was in the same vicinity. As I watched them bring out my role model, my eyes filled. I had no idea she would even be there. She was given the treatment of a queen as she came out silently but full of vigor. Dr. Height lived a full life but she was also full of life. She was full of spirit. Full of spunk.

With her passing she leaves a legacy. She leaves a legacy of service. She leaves a legacy of commitment. She leaves us with determination. If I were to write her epitaph, it would read these words:

Here lies change.
Here lies hope.
Here lies freedom.
Here lies love.

Here lies dedication,
Determination,
Perseverance,
and poise.

Here lies an inspiration.
Rest in Promise, Dr. Dorothy Irene Height

We have lost a soldier but the war continues.

I'll miss you. See you when I get there.

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