Happy Birthday Dr. King

I've always felt a connection with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Perhaps his "I Have a Dream" speech seeped into my in utero consciousness as my mom lay on the beach that warm August day listening to history unfold, five months shy from giving birth to me one day after Dr. King's birthday.

Perhaps it's because I saw his face almost everyday on the cover of a book about black (or was it Negro?) leaders that displayed prominently in my house when I was a child.

Perhaps it's because of lasting memories from the age of four of the National Guard camping out across the street from our house during the riots in DC that followed Dr. King's assassination.

Or perhaps, like milions of others, it's simply in admiration of his foresight, his leadership, his courage, his selflessness, his sacrifice.

Whatever the reasons, I'm grateful that Martin Luther King, Jr. came into this world 82 years ago today.