Hi,
This is Radiance and I am here to lead you through a meditative journaling session today honoring Dr.
King and inspired by his I Have a Dream speech.
2023 is the 60th anniversary celebrating Dr.
King's life and legacy.
Sometimes we just simply need to have a moment of reflection and that's what we're going to do today.
Go ahead and grab a pen and paper which is my recommendation or you can use the notes in your phone.
Simply take this time to cultivate a space of stillness within your environment and your spirit.
As I infuse Dr.
King's I Have a Dream speech and some of his famous quotes into different prompts and affirmations to guide us today.
Let's start by taking a deep inhale in here.
Exhale,
Release.
Exhale,
Release.
Two more just like that.
Inhale in.
Exhale,
Release.
Inhale in.
Exhale,
Release.
Preparing your mind and your spirit to be able to receive the words as well as being a translator to your own heart.
Taking what you need and really diving in to what resonates with you.
In Dr.
King's speech a phrase that jumped out at me is,
Now is the time.
So I want to begin by writing now is the time in all caps on the top of your paper or the beginning of your notepad.
This will serve as an anchor throughout the meditation.
In 1963,
Dr.
King published In Strength to Love where he quoted his famous phrase,
Darkness cannot drive out darkness,
Only light can do that.
Hate cannot drive out hate,
Only love can do that.
So my first question is,
Where are you being called to shine your light?
Take a deep breath in,
Filling your body with breath and light.
Exhale,
Release.
And let that resonate in your spirit.
How you are writing,
I want you to consider,
Am I allowing my light to shine?
How can I illuminate others with my light?
In affirming yourself that,
I want my light to shine unapologetically.
I want others to be drawn to and curious about my light.
I want others to be excited to exude light like mine.
What an honor,
What a blessing.
Now mind you,
Dr.
King intertwines hate and darkness and then lights and love.
So let's toggle light and love.
Where are you being called to shine your light?
Taking into consideration,
Am I allowing my love to shine?
How can I illuminate others with my love?
In affirming yourself,
I want my love to shine unapologetically.
I want others to be drawn to and curious about my love.
I want others to be excited to exude love like mine.
What an honor,
What a blessing.
Take some time here and write out your thoughts and what comes to your heart.
And I'll come back for our next prompt.
September 12th,
1962,
Dr.
King gave another famous speech in New York City.
This is where he quoted,
Faith is taking the first step when you don't see the whole staircase.
My question to you is,
What step of faith are you being called to take?
Considering that shining your lights and your love is an endless staircase.
All we need to do is identify the first step.
What is your first step of faith?
Now is the time to take that step of faith and to shine your light.
Take a deep inhale in,
Filling your lungs with the symphony of peace.
Exhale,
Release.
Finding your own breath here and resetting as we prepare to journal affirmations inspired by Dr.
King's,
I have a dream speech.
As I speak,
Write down the affirmations that resonate with you.
I will go through the affirmations twice,
So don't feel like you have to rush.
Just simply write down the ones that feel good to you on the first round.
And then the same for the second.
To start,
Let's take a collective breath in,
Exhale,
Release,
And allow these words to permeate your spirit.
I do not wallow in the valley of despair.
I embrace valleys for their views and perspectives.
I rise from valleys with ease.
In hard times,
I remind myself that this is not an end,
But a beginning.
I know my situation can and will be changed.
I do not have to walk alone.
I will not walk.
I will always march ahead.
I take the narrow path with unwavering faith.
I am deeply rooted and I rise to majestic heights.
I am an oasis of freedom and justice.
I live on a high plane of dignity.
The content of my character is loving and illuminating.
I am invigorating.
I am a beacon of light.
I am joyous daybreak.
I am a soul force.
I am the dream and thank God Almighty,
I am free at last.
I do not wallow in the valley of despair.
I embrace valleys for their views and perspectives.
I rise from valleys with ease.
In hard times,
I remind myself that this is not an end,
But a beginning.
I know my situation can and will be changed.
I do not have to walk alone.
I will not walk.
I will always march ahead.
I take the narrow path with unwavering faith.
I am deeply rooted and I rise to majestic heights.
I am an oasis of freedom and justice.
I live on a high plane of dignity.
The content of my character is loving and illuminating.
I am invigorating.
I am a beacon of light.
I am joyous daybreak.
I am a soul force.
I am the dream and thank God Almighty,
I am free at last.
Take a deep inhale in,
Holding here,
Exhale release,
Allowing those affirmations to permeate your spirit.
An overarching theme of Dr.
King's speech is unity.
He spoke greatly about how your freedom is tied with my freedom.
Your destiny is tied up my destiny.
And he states in the speech that we cannot walk alone.
And as we walk,
We must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead.
We cannot turn back.
Dr.
King said this to an audience in Montgomery,
Alabama in 1957 and it still rings true today and every day.
Life's most persistent and urgent question is what are you doing for others?
It is our responsibility to shine our light on one another in whatever way we can.
We are all uniquely designed and stilled with a beacon of light to shine.
So we must use our combined experiences and our combined lights to help not just where you are,
Not even in the country you reside,
But in the entire world.
To stand up for freedom together,
Knowing that we will be free one day.
Psychologically and physically.
Now is the time to take that step of faith,
However small it may be.
Now is the time to shine your light,
How much darkness surrounds you.
Now is the time to shine your light,
Even to those who may be hard to love.
Now is the time to shine your light and your love on purpose.
You can use the remainder of the time to journal your thoughts and anything that comes to your mind or your spirit.
Or maybe you simply want to write a thank you to Dr.
King for all the work that he's done to lead us this far.
Also,
I encourage you to think of a friend,
A family member,
Or maybe someone you don't even know that well and send them one of the affirmations that you wrote today.
Again,
What are you doing for others?
Sometimes simply a smile or words of encouragement can have a ripple effect onto the rest of the world.
My name is Radiance Bayston and I thank you for listening to this meditation today and honoring Dr.
King,
His life,
And his legacy.
May you have a wonderful day on purpose.
