Dedicated to the memory of Martin Luther King, Jr.

By Douglas J. Lanzo
Copyright 2023

First published in Academy of the Heart and Mind (February 20, 2023)

Two leaders of their peoples,
yearning to be free,
shattering cruel vestiges,
of tragic slavery.

The first, son of a pastor,
thundering Sundays,
the second, raised in Egypt,
kin to Hebrew slaves.

Both spoke out for true freedom,
dignity and rights,
speaking with authority
leading righteous fights.

One spoke in broken stutters,
Aaron by his side,
the other to ovations,
his words sounding far and wide.

Neither crossed the last river…
to the Promised Land,
yet both quenched their people’s thirst,
guided by God’s hand,
following Him through deserts —
parting seas and sands —
neither bullet nor Pharaoh,
could their cause disband.