Humble

Up From Slavery by Booker T. Washington, pgs 665-687


First of all I have to admit that I find his "humbleness" to be very intriguing. As I read through the different chapters, Booker had every right to be angry with the white race. From the beginning of his life he did not even know the basics like the day and year he was born. As an adult I still think birthdays are a very special day for the people involved. Here is a boy who slept on a pile of rags when they had them, lived in a fourteen by sixteen square foot, pure air filled cabin with two other siblings and his mom. His "white" dad stopped by once a year around Christmas time. Not only did Booker have lousy living conditions he also had to work because he was a slave. Here is a young child who has to ride on top of a corn bag three miles down the road to the mill to get the corn ground. It sounds like More often than not, that bag of heavy corn fell off the horse as he did as well. Waiting for a stranger in a strange land for a little child is fear in its animated form. With bad living conditions, no stable source of food except for what they raised on the plantation, and having to wear a "Flax" shirt, Booker, I believe, had a strong foundation in the Bible even though he never comes out and says it. On page 671, Booker states,
"When people ask me in these days how, in the midst of what sometimes seem hopelessly discouraging conditions, I can have such faith in the future of my race in this country, I remind them of the wilderness though which and out of which, a good Providence has already led us."

The influence that his mother had on him was absolutely profound. From his homespun cap, to his understanding of the value of money or lack there of, not going into debt, and just the fact that under no circumstances do you complain about what you don't have, but be thankful for what you have been given. On page 677, Booker states that, "The lesson that my mother taught me in this has always remained with me, and I have tried as best I could to teach it to others." He was saying to live within your means, don't let the burden of debt weigh you down because there is bigger issues in life than consuming yourself with work.

There is so much to say about Booker that it is hard to get it down on paper. As I look through and think about the excepts that I read, I think about how one man with his back against the wall, could accomplish so much. Teaching himself how to read while working a full time job, to giving the speech of his lifetime. Overcoming great odds with such a positive outlook on life established by his loving mother. Booker knew from the start that overcoming the boundaries of his color was going to be a long and time consuming challenge that he was hitting head on with education mixed with a love for humanity. Like Martin Luther King, Booker knew that to make progress with racial issues arising you have to try to do it through peaceful solutions. Booker was well aware that there were racial problems by his statement on page 687, "they should be made to apply with equal and exact justice for both races." In his speech he tells his audience that it is going to take blacks and whites getting there hands dirty to make a better place for us all.

AS more thoughts come flooding out, I will try to edit my post.