As most of America is enjoying this holiday and the extended weekend, many are reminiscing on their forefathers and ancestors and the years of tireless effort, endless labor and sacrifice they made to create a better life for future generations.
Today marks 125 years of acknowledging and celebrating the gargantuan monuments of labor and love poured into this soil that we call America. But as with many great stories, it is riddled with controversy, despair, heartache, and tragedy. Let us not forget that before we see the rainbow, first must come the storm and America was built on a storm that continues to brew today.
Celebrating also means remembering and honoring those that came before us and literally poured their blood, sweat and tears into what we now have the privilege, and I do mean privilege, of partaking and indulging in. As such, this generation must continue the fight for equal and fair employment, equal and fair pay, and equal and fair benefits. Until we are equal in every facet and treated fairly across the board, this labor must and shall continue.
Think of it this way. A pregnant woman is in labor for nine months and during that time she goes through may changes, mentally and physically. Her hormones are out of balance, her body goes through multiple transformations and all in the exercise of laboring through for something greater – birthing hope and love. If nothing else, everyone needs hope and yearns for love. They are the cornerstone of what bridges gaps, mends wrongs, and opens doors to destiny. What is your labor birthing?
If you do nothing else on this holiday and the days to come, please remember the plights of those from the past and extend hope and love to everyone in the present. Happy Labor Day.
“No work is insignificant. All labor that uplifts humanity has dignity and importance and should be undertaken with painstaking excellence.” ~ Martin Luther King, Jr.
“A hundred times every day, I remind myself that my inner and outer life depend on the labors of other men, living and dead, and that I must exert myself in order to give in the same measure as I have received and am still receiving.” ~ Albert Einstein
“It is only through labor and painful effort, by grim energy and resolute courage, that we move on to better things.” ~ Theodore Roosevelt