A Joyful Practice

A Quick Note, Links, & Excerpts Related to Freedom [& Dreaming] (a post-practice Monday post) January 20, 2026

Many blessings to everyone, and especially for anyone celebrating the Holy Theophany of Jesus (Baptism of the Lord) May everyone breathe deeply and savor the richness of living a three dimensional life!

May you be safe and protected / May you be peaceful and happy / May you be healthy and strong!

This is a short post-practice post for Monday, January 19^th (with excerpts). It includes some links that will direct you to a site outside of this blog. The 2026 prompt question was, “‘…which age would you like to live in?’” You can request an audio recording of this practice or a previous practice via a comment below or (for a slightly faster reply) you can email myra      (at) ajoyfulpractice.com.

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Check out the “Class Schedules” calendar for upcoming classes.

“Something is happening in Memphis; something is happening in our world. And you know, if I were standing at the beginning of time, with the possibility of taking a kind of general and panoramic view of the whole of human history up to now, and the Almighty said to me, ‘Martin Luther King, which age would you like to live in?’ I would take my mental flight by Egypt and I would watch God’s children in their magnificent trek from the dark dungeons of Egypt through, or rather across the Red Sea, through the wilderness on toward the promised land. And in spite of its magnificence, I wouldn’t stop there.”

— quoted from the “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop” speech, delivered Wednesday, April 3, 1968, at Mason Temple (Church of God in Christ Headquarters), Memphis, Tennessee by Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.

In anticipation of Martin Luther King Jr. Day — which is the third Monday in January for most of the United States¹ — the January 17^th episode of Code Switch featured B. A. Parker interviewing Nicholas Buccola, the historian and author of One Man’s Freedom. The book uses the activism and political engagement of Martin Luther King and Barry Goldwater to examine the concept of freedom and the interview discussed the ways in which these two public figures had different concepts of freedom.

The idea that “freedom” means something different to different people — and/or different groups of people — is something I have considered before. Of course, in philosophies like Yoga and Buddhism, freedom (and liberation) are related to the end of suffering; with pain being something physical and suffering being something mental and/or emotional. Physical pain can lead to mental and emotional suffering, and vice versa; however, one does not automatically lead to the other. Suffering, ultimately, comes down to attitude — even when someone is intentionally inflicting pain and suffering on others.

This is why someone very rich and (politically) powerful can be miserable, while someone financially and/or physically poor can have a good time.

This is why, as the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. illustrated in his “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop” speech, someone can be happy even as they are struggling — and, sometimes, specifically because they believe their suffering will ultimately lead to the end of suffering.

Click on the excerpt titles below for other sermons that I have highlighted on MLK Day and for more about MLK.

A Quick Note, Links, & Excerpts Related to Life (a post-practice Monday post)

Happy Wisdom Day: To Noble Kings

“Strangely enough, I would turn to the Almighty, and say, ‘If you allow me to live just a few years in the second half of the 20th century, I will be happy.’

Now that’s a strange statement to make, because the world is all messed up. The nation is sick. Trouble is in the land; confusion all around. That’s a strange statement. But I know, somehow, that only when it is dark enough can you see the stars. And I see God working in this period of the twentieth century in a way that men, in some strange way, are responding.

Something is happening in our world. The masses of people are rising up. And wherever they are assembled today, whether they are in Johannesburg, South Africa; Nairobi, Kenya; Accra, Ghana; New York City; Atlanta, Georgia; Jackson, Mississippi; or Memphis, Tennessee — the cry is always the same: ‘We want to be free.’”

— quoted from the “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop” speech, delivered Wednesday, April 3, 1968, at Mason Temple (Church of God in Christ Headquarters), Memphis, Tennessee by Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.

Today’s prompt question might seem strange and out of place in the context of a practice about being present, right here and right now. And I debated using it — even though I lifted it directly from Reverend King’s final speech. It is interesting to note that, like MLK’s answers, the answers on Monday night were related to change and, more than once, to times when people were struggling for civil rights and civil liberties.

It seems many people dream of change and, also, of being part of making those dreams come true.

“And I knew that as they were sitting in, they were really standing up for the best in the American dream, and taking the whole nation back to those great wells of democracy which were dug deep by the Founding Fathers in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.”

— quoted from the “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop” speech, delivered Wednesday, April 3, 1968, at Mason Temple (Church of God in Christ Headquarters), Memphis, Tennessee by Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.

Speaking of dreams, this year (2026), the third Monday in January happens to fall on the birthday of another dreamer, seeker, and preacher: the “Dolly Lama”!

Click on the excerpt title below for more about Dolly Partin, born January 19, 1946.

FTWMI: Seeking…. (the “missing” Sunday post)

“If you don’t like the road you’re walking, start paving another one.”

— Dolly Parton

There is no playlist for the Common Ground Meditation Center practices. 

NOTE: The “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop” speech was Martin Luther King Jr’s final speech, as he was assassinated the following day (on April 4, 1968).

Click here to listen and/or read the speech on the American Rhetoric website.

If you are thinking about suicide, worried about a friend or loved one, or would like emotional support, you can dial 988 (in the US) or call 1-800-273-TALK (8255) for the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. You can also call this TALK line if you are struggling with addiction or involved in an abusive relationship. The Lifeline network is free, confidential, and available to all 24/7. YOU CAN TALK ABOUT ANYTHING.

White Flag is an app, which I have not yet researched, but which may be helpful if you need peer-to-peer (non-professional) support.

If you are a young person in crisis, feeling suicidal, or in need of a safe and judgement-free place to talk, you can also click here to contact the TrevorLifeline (which is staffed 24/7 with trained counselors).

NOTE: ¹While the third Monday in January is a federal holiday observed in all 50 states and the United States territories, not everyone observes it simply as “MLK Day”. Some states include “Civil Rights”, “Human Rights”, or “Equality” in the name. Other states (umm, specifically states in the South), have historically named the day after King and at least one Confederate general. While some of those Confederate observations have been eliminated, some were simply moved to other dates.

CORRECTION: During the 2026 practice, I erroneously said that Nicholas Buccola wrote about Martin Luther King Jr. and Bull Connors, as opposed to MLK and Barry Goldwater.

### “We need all of you.” ~ MLK ###