"Whatever Your Life's Work"

"Whatever your life's work is, do it well. A man should do his job so well that the living, the dead, and the unborn could do it no better. If it falls your lot to be a street sweeper, sweep streets like Michelangelo painted pictures, like Shakespeare wrote poetry, like Beethoven composed music; sweep streets so well that all the host of heaven and earth will have to pause and say, "Here lived a great street sweeper, who swept his job well." Dec. 3, 1956-Montgomery, Alabama, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Does this apply to you? If not, can you apply this to your life's work? From this day forward, pick up the challenge that Dr. King left with us, "Whatever your life's work is, do it well."

If all workers performed their jobs as Martin Luther King, Jr. Pointed out, we would not have to be concerned with the widespread ineptness, foul ups, and breakdowns that plague our society today. If persons in occupations such as agriculture, machine trades, construction, printing, textile, medicine, engineering, clerical, sales, professional, technical, and managerial performed their jobs as Michelangelo painted pictures, and as Shakespeare wrote poetry, we would indeed have a magnificent society.

Those who performed their life's work well:
• Michelangelo: An Italian painter, sculptor, and architect, he was one of the greatest artists of all time.

• William Shakespeare: A playwright and poet of the late 16th and 17th century, he was considered the greatest writer of English.

• Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr: Minister, writer, speaker, and civil rights activist.

• Ludwig Van Beethoven: A German composer of the late 18th and early 19th centuries he was one of the greatest composers.

• Frederick Douglass: Eloquent advocate and protestor who fought slavery.

• Paul Laurence Dunbar: One of the most popular and influential black writers of his time.

• Duke Ellington: The most influential black composer of the 20th century and one of the most prolific American composers.

• Benjamin Banneker: An inventor and scientist during the colonial and post- revolutionary periods. He planned and surveyed the location of Washington, D.C.

Could we truly, properly, rightly commendably (which are some of the definitions for the word "well"), perform our duties so well that no one before you, no one before you, no one living now or to come, could do your work better? Just imagine doing your job so well that no other living person could do it better than you, nor could anyone living before you match your ability, nor could anyone to be born perform your duties better than you.

Dr. King has presented an astounding and reflective challenge. Dr. King proposed, "whatever your life's work, do it well." Whatever your occupation, if you're a surgeon or a security guard, a judge or a janitor, do your job so well that no one before you, no one living now, or to come, can do it better. If you're a laborer or a cashier, pilot or a tax-driver, teacher, preacher, principle or crossing guard, whatever, your job or duties, do it so well that no one before you, no one living now or to come can do it better.

About The Author:

Tyrone T. Dancy, Retired U.S. Army, is the recipient of the Combat Infantry Badge, the Bronze Star for Heroism with the "V" for Valor, and the Purple Heart for wounds sustained in combat. Tyrone served with the 199th Infantry Brigade in Vietnam in 1969.

Currently, Tyrone is host of the Veterans Hour Radio Program on WDAS-AM 1480. The program is aired the first Saturday each month from 6-7 p.m. It addresses many issues relevant to veterans and their dependents.

In June, 1995, Tyrone published a book, "War Aftermath Depose". It's about the consequences of war on its participants. It's told in verse, essays, poems and commentaries. Tyrone points out besides the psychological and physical devastation of war on the soldiers, many have triumphed, risen, and made constructive contributions to their community.

Recently, Tyrone has collaborated with Bud Kowalewski, playwright and producer of the production, "Reflections", psychop1@aol.com. Tyrone is a contributing artist and performer for "Reflections", tdancy2502@aol.com.

Tyrone's website: http://www.coax.net/people/lwf/ttdancy.htm