The Work, The Cause, The Hope and the Dream

The Work, The Cause, The Hope and the Dream
By Shari L. Veleba

Late last Tuesday night in Massachusetts, U.S. Senator Edward M. “Ted” Kennedy passed from this life into the next. It was a transition that was not unexpected due to his terminal illness, but it was sad nonetheless to hear the news during the waking hours of early morning Wednesday reports. He was 77 years old, and served in the Senate for nearly 50 years.

Today – Saturday – in Boston, he was eulogized by family and friends and even by President Barack Obama, at the Mission Church. This evening, he was laid to rest in Arlington National Cemetery, near the graves of his brothers John, and Robert. The night before, his body lay in repose at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, also located in Boston. Colleagues from Congress and family spoke about his life.

Five years ago, I stood in that very same presidential museum, perused the history within its walls and embraced the outside view of the harbor and the ocean. I tried to see as far as I could that day, because I had never before set my eyes on the Atlantic. I remember the short, white painted posts connected by links of painted white chain hanging in scallops. It was as close as I had ever been to the ocean. Up until then, my only references to large bodies of water had been the Great Lakes, and Lake Erie in particular, various rivers and streams, and the rare crossing of the Mississippi.

I recall that poignant quotes are etched into the marble walls of the museum. It is almost a sacred space, and those who tour it do so in quiet reflection upon the instances in time when the Kennedy family history and the history of the United States merged into one narrative. That, of course, happened on more than one occasion, and twice at the hands of an assassin.

I was reminded, through the news coverage, of a speech delivered by Senator Kennedy at the 1980 Democratic National Convention in New York City. While he did not receive the nomination for the presidency as he had hoped, his speech lives on as a reminder that fighting for the poor and the issues that beset them would remain his calling in the Senate.

He said:
“For all those whose cares have been our concern, the work goes on, the cause endures, the hope still lives, and the dream shall never die.”

People need to hear things like that, and I believe we need to hear them even more than we think we do. It’s good for a nation to know that people in high level leadership positions are aware of the plight of the poor, because more often than not, the voice of the poor does not have a megaphone, or microphone. The spotlight, instead, is tilted toward the rich, and the needs of conglomerates that gain time with legislators through hefty monetary donations that the poor can never equal or afford.

Not only do people need to hear and read that legislators understand and care, but average citizens need to be able to believe what they hear and read from their elected leaders. Not just on a superficial level, but on a personal, real level.

When that happens, the wheels of democracy more easily move forward. People wake up on Election Day, go to the polls and vote. They call a legislative office and leave a message either for or against pieces of proposed legislation. They testify before legislative committees. The people participate, and feel that they matter, that they count. Communication and collaboration improves. The seed of inclusion is planted and grows, and tells everyone that government really is of, by and for the people.

Setting one’s sights on the streams, rivers and Great Lakes is wonderful. Those territories need to be watched over. But once a person has seen the ocean, horizons broaden. I believe that Senator Kennedy, in his decades of service to the country, helped us to see in a new light the oceans of problems that plague our country and the oceans of possibilities that exist to solve them. He helped set the course toward solutions that have the potential to help everyone stay afloat rather than flounder.

Because we have lost the voice of one senator who was extraordinarily passionate and vocal about social justice and other issues, we have a task before us. It is important that we, the people, find that same passion within each of our lives and rededicate our efforts toward being a help, and not a hindrance to a better and more inclusive nation. In doing that, we will move forward and progress. And what shall be our guiding light? The eternal flame, of course. It illuminates and keeps alive the work, the cause, the hope and the dream.

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Shari L. Veleba is a writer based in Columbus, OH and is a former, long-time resident of Fremont, OH.