Sigh. I am getting a cold--congested and achy. I would rather be well, thank you.

Yesterday was MLK Day. I wonder how different the world would be if he had lived. Would he have managed to inspire us to a better today? I am not proud of our political system in this moment, although surely he would be happy to know Obama was president.

Ray and I signed up for a volunteer project at Burney-Harris-Lyons middle school, the closest to our house. I thought, among other things, it would be good to make connections there for future volunteer or even paid work. There was a kickoff breakfast downtown, but we didn't think it made sense to drive there and back, not to mention the getting up and getting going part--and it is still icy on our road.

One thing that I find somewhat frustrating is that the projects one can choose from are almost always landscaping. Planting bulbs, clearing brush... Is that the kind of service MLK would have approved? I know he would like the diverse group of people that showed up. And the numbers are amazing. Logistically, it must be a huge challenge to come up with projects for all the people who want to help.

We showed up a little after 10, thinking possibly the people who went to the breakfast might be running late, the threat of rain might have canceled it, the snow still covering some of the ground would be a deterrent. As we arrived, we saw one group of mainly children with a couple women, heading to plant bulbs. They directed us behind the school. There was a sign-in sheet and a lot of tools, but no one to tell us what needed doing. One man was working within sight on a mulch pile. I went to ask him and he said he was clearing the leaves and twigs out and was just about done. About that time, Pat came back from where she had been supervising another group. She got us started on digging a new bed in front of the storage shed. Ray and I were joined by Michelle and Brian, who looked vaguely familiar. Turns out, they work at Kroger and we had seen them there. They also run an online newspaper called Classic City Courier, which I need to check out. They will "print" just about anything I want to submit. They are not making any money yet, just getting started.

Michelle has long braids and an interesting accent. Turns out she's from Quebec, by way of Atlanta. But her accent seems more Caribbean to me. Her daughter Alayah attends the school and is very active in the gardening club. She was charming and very competent, a born leader, it seems to me. Wade joined us. He brought his children from Gwinnett County, because Athens was the closest place they had service projects for people like this. Although he is a software engineer, he was awfully good with a shovel, moving from project to project wherever he was needed. Pat scurried around, trying to direct the three different groups and provide them with all the tools and materials they needed, hauling heavy bags of manure and sand and top soil. The daffodils and tulips we planted will surely be the happiest around. Another group included lots of UGA students, fooling around and having a good time while they worked. More bulbs here, chrysanthemums there. With this much energy and good will, surely we can solve bigger problems?

Ray and I headed home a little after 12. It seemed there were enough people to take care of the remaining work. We left a hat and Ray-sized sweatshirt with Michelle's youngest, an eight-year-old who was so cold, she had trouble doing anything but being unhappy. We have plenty of hats and sweatshirts, but I bet we will see them again.

Lunch was sandwiches. We put up the heat and recovered from our labors. It started to rain, but we had not yet walked Cameron, so we took him out to the road and back. After that, a bath was nice. I called Nancy S. and invited her to come for supper, which she did. It was delicious and then we played some more cards for awhile. She mentioned that I could help with some work at the Land Trust and I said I would be delighted. I hope it is soon! Not sure that any money is involved, but that's fine. I talked to Nancy H. on the phone for a while, and she mentioned a service that Tom was trying to start, helping elderly and/or sick people with paying their bills. I'll have to talk to him more about that. He ended up getting a job, so didn't pursue it.

After Nancy left, I was invigorated and stayed up late, knitting and watching TV. The movie I was watching had a sad ending, but then Jewel of the Nile came on. I managed to turn it off and get to bed by 11.