Day 3 – Kindness

As I sit in bed tonight, I feel very fulfilled. The events of the day provided me with encouragement and joy. Starting out our day with Ms. Rutha Harris and her colleague Ms. Eartha Watkins leading us in freedom songs was quite refreshing. After over a year without true congregational singing, it was amazing to join in with Rutha and Eartha as they projected their voices throughout the hall. It felt wonderful to sing, laugh, and clap once again. I couldn’t help but imagine what it was like for Rutha and her peers to sing these powerful songs together as they marched through the streets of Albany. I thought it was very interesting how she mentioned that, often, when groups started singing, the policemen would drop their weapons. Something as simple and nonviolent as singing has immense power. Rutha also told the story of how one of the local officials came to her when she was jailed and asked her to sing the song the group had written about him. She noted that he was “less evil” than many of the other white policemen down south such as Bull Connor. In a region whose law enforcement was dominated by racist ideology at the time, it was encouraging to hear that Rutha noticed he was an anomaly of sorts. As we continued our journey and made various stops at churches, eateries, and stores, kindness just seemed to be everywhere. The day ended with a lovely, filling meal catered by Sophia, who greeted us each with a hug as we walked inside. As Dr. Allen remarked, you could certainly feel the love in each dish she prepared.  

Jane Mylin

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