It’s only natural that I recall Martin Luther King Jr today. I’m sure you all know of his India connection because of his great respect for Mahatma Gandhi and the non-violent movement. But today I want to focus on an MLK quote that seems so relevant to our times and really resonates with me.
MLK Quote
“Rarely do we find men who willingly engage in hard, solid thinking. There is an almost universal quest for easy answers and half-baked solutions”
Until recently, I had never read these words of MLK’s before.
Just the other day, I said to José that it seems everyone wants easy answers these days.
I was talking in the context of people who are not willing to get real enough to get to the root of problems in their relationships. Partners who don’t really want to talk through their issues. They’d rather pretend there aren’t any, or just give up and walk away. Parents who don’t hear their children’s cry for attention and fob them off with expensive gadgets.
I see the same quest for easy answers when people ask me how to do something blog or soical media related. I’ve learned not to provide answers, but to point them in the direction of resources. To me, there’s nothing like doing your research and learning things for yourself.
We take the easy route with our health too. We’d rather down a whole lot of pills or get surgeries done than adopt a healthier lifestyle.
I see this happening in Government and institutions and in the way we are handling issues of corruption, injustice and sticking to archaic practices. The way governments refuse to crack down on religious fundamentalism, because it is the easy way to get votes.
I see this in religious practices where people would rather give in to superstition and easy ‘miraculous’ healings than work on true spirituality and discipleship.
How This Applies To My Life
I know that I too often opt for easy answers. Choosing appeasing behaviour rather than hard talking. Self-indulgence over application of mind and energy. Avoiding confrontation by absenting myself from difficult situations.
I’m learning to do the hard work – to take on injustice in small ways, to speak up when needs be, to cut off relationships in which I am disrespected, to think problems through. To be unpopular. Not to take the easy way out. Because that would go against my principles. It’s not for the faint-hearted, but there there’s no other choice, is there?
I would love to hear your thoughts on MLK’s words.
I always believe in finding one’s own way out of a mess, Kalpanaa (because it’s usually our own creation, anyway! 😉 )
Corinne Rodrigues recently posted..Inspirational Quotes On Time Management
I recall a quote Corinne; a wise person once said most people would rather die than think. Sure it sounds funny at first but when you begin to realize that our mind is unlimited – literally – people choose the death of the body, rather than healing from within, following their passion and clearly thinking, feeling and acting their life by design. What a quote. I love it. Timely too.
Ryan Biddulph recently posted..Do You Want to See How to Gain Exposure through a Blogging Community?
I love this connection between MLK Jr and India. I was high school student in Memphis, where MLK Jr was killed. I remember the day. His teachings and his connection to Gandhi have always been very influential in my life. I appreciate your sharing these words of wisdom. Your commentary on how the quest for easy answers plays out in our governments and in our personal lives, shows how the “quick fix” so permeates our cultures and our interactions. I remember when I was a girl and I would ask my dad something, hoping he would just answer me, he would say “Let’s go look that up!” And off we would go to the encyclopedia to learn about whatever I had asked about. No quick, easy answer from him! He loved to learn and find out about things.
This is a meandering comment, but your post got me to thinking about lots of different things!
Galen Pearl recently posted..Prayer of the Year
I wasn’t familiar with this particular quote either, but such a good one. Our modern world with its ever-changing technologies sometimes teaches us to grab for the easy fix. But that’s not always sufficient when we want long-term results. Thanks for sharing this quote and your insights, Corinne. I totally agree with you!
This quote is much relevant in today’s world. With google and now ChatGPT, half baked easy answers are available quickly. But the funny thing is I have seen people not having the patience to even do a quick google search before throwing out the question for someone else to answer. We humans do show a tendency to take the easy way out if that would mean one can stop working for a second early.
Without thinking good conversations hardly come by. No wonder people like to spend time with their phones these days!