Revisiting John Lewis
I live in Decatur, Georgia, a small, usually sleepy little town of around 27,000 residents. For context, that’s about the size of Key West, Florida or Bar Harbor, Maine. According to local legend, in the 1830’s, Decatur residents voted down the opportunity to become a railroad junction. A new location, originally named Terminus, was created for that purpose six miles to the west. Decatur residents valued their quiet, small-town values and feared the railroads would bring in undesirable elements. Terminus, of course, grew into Thrasherville, then Marthasville, and ultimately became known as Atlanta. The rest, as they say, is history.
These days, Decatur retains much of its small-town charm despite being quite literally swallowed by Atlanta. Take the Guild + Journeyman coffee shop, for example. Our local cycling group winds up there every Saturday, after our weekly ride out to and around Stone Mountain. The sign out front reads “Coffee, Bikes, Community”. It is really that simple. Someone from the Morris family (the owners) is always there. It reminds me of a bygone era where you might see a group of old-timers gathered around a pot belly stove, holding court at the local hardware store.
We didn’t realize it, but this Saturday was special. Decatur had planned to unveil a new statue honoring Congressman John Lewis. Instead of the usual quiet morning, we experienced helicopters overhead and a steady stream of new and smiling faces, making their way up Clairemont Ave. to the city square. It was fun to greet them with a hearty, small-town welcome as they strolled up the sidewalk. The weather was beautiful, unseasonably cool for August, and everyone seemed to be in good spirits.
After coffee, several of us strolled up to the square for a better view of the unfolding event. There was a long line to get through security and it looked like proceedings were going to last for a good long while. We soaked it in for a few minutes then said our goodbyes and pedaled home.
In all my years in and around Decatur, I never had the chance to meet John Lewis. I did have occasion to see his 2014 commencement address at Emory. I pulled it up again on YouTube when I got home. You can find it here: https://youtu.be/7r3kypsRGnk?si=tDREZ5XKoNXG4hjP . It is only twelve minutes long, and I encourage you to watch it if you have time. I remembered it was a powerful speech, but I had forgotten just how powerful. Even through the tiny speakers on my Samsung tablet, his voice was strong and authoritative. His message was challenging and authentic, born from overcoming a painful experience and working a lifetime to make the world a better place.
I’ll be the first to admit, I don’t agree with everything John Lewis tried to accomplish as a politician. My lens has been more focused on finance and economics, in a more Adam Smith, “Invisible Hand” kind of way. Still, I’m going to make it a point to revisit this speech periodically, maybe every MLK Day, to see if I can’t harness some of its raw power and use it to keep me focused on having a positive impact on the world in all my endeavors. I hope you will join me.
Mike Masters