My New Years Party Guest List
Who I would invite and why.
All of us have people in the rear of our minds we admire or would like to speak to. Some of these people are still alive while others are dead, and their light no longer illuminates the world. I recently read several posts about who my fellow writers would invite to their New Years Party. It would be a monumental occasion for this middle-aged southern writer to meet all the people on my list. I could probably create a list of at least ten if not twenty, but to stay within the limits of this beautiful prompt, I will give five who I would love to speak to over a New Years’ libation. I want to thank Helen Cassidy Page for tagging me.
Martin Luther King, Jr.
“We must accept finite disappointment but never lose infinite hope.”
Martin Luther King, Jr
I would pull up a chair next to MLK and ask him what does he think of the United States in the year 2020. Does he think his work was completed or was their more work to do to improve race relations? I want his thoughts on police brutality against African Americans and how the murder of Travon Martin sparked Black Lives Matter.
I would ask about his writing process as one of the greatest speakers and writers to ever live. How did he write “I Have a Dream” and where was his mind as he penned his seminal work that still resonates today. Does he see the dream achieved, or does the current polarized nature of our nation sadden him? I would think his answer would be the dream is still just that a dream.
I believe at the end of our conversation, he would speak to me about hope and not become disillusioned in a world filled with hate. He would see the election of Trump as a call to action to renew justice in our country and stomp out injustice. The election of 2016 was a disappointment, but there is hope because the same nation elected a black president twice.
Abraham Lincoln.
“Those who deny freedom to others deserve it not for themselves; and, under a just God, can not long retain it.” April 6, 1859 — Letter to Henry Pierce
A wartime president is a person who must guide a nation in a time of significant loss of life and hate for our fellow man. Abraham Lincoln was a wartime president, and he presided over a country that was tearing itself apart in the cause of enslaving or not enslaving another human being.
After the Emancipation Proclamation did he believe the nation would support legalized segregation that would lead to the Jim Crow South. I wonder what his response would be to the lynchings of thousands of Black Americans after he set them free. What would be his thoughts about the denial of the right to vote by evil southern whites who arbitrarily terrorized African Americans in their own homes? I contemplate how he would process the murder and torture of the ancestors of the slaves he freed. I hope the 16th POTUS of the United States would be appalled and see it as a denial of freedom.
I would ask his opinion about the current status of the descendants of the slaves he freed over 150 years ago. Does he see progress? I would hazard his answer would be yes because of all the ideas and achievements Black have made to America. He would witness that his reversal in policy about sending slaves back to Africa was the correct thing to do. Yes, it’s been tough being African American in the United States. Still, I think he would admire our tenacity to survive and achieve in this hostile environment.
I would like to meander through Lincoln’s thoughts on the current Republican Party. Is he happy with a man like Donald Trump leading the party that freed the slaves? Would he be on board with impeachment? Considering Lincoln’s reputation for integrity and honesty, I think he would find the current President’s actions horrible and violation of the American people’s trust.
Prince Rogers Nelson
“When you sit down to write something, there should be no guidelines. The main idea is not supposed to be, ‘How many different ways can we sell it?’ That’s so far away from the true spirit of what music is.”
Prince
When Prince passed away, I shed tears for his loss. He created a new sound in the wilds of Minneapolis. Not many artists can have new ideas in music attributed to them. He was and still is an icon.
When we sit down to write, there should be no guidelines. Only the page and the writer should exist in the moment of creation with no hindrance to the process.
Prince’s music inspired me to write love poetry. His ability to create lyrics that drilled into your soul was uncanny. He is another whose writing process I would want to know. How did he find the inspiration for “Purple Rain”? An album that younger generations are still listening to in the year 2020.
I would like to know what he would write in 2020. What type of song would he write to uplift the world and offer hope? Music can open up a person’s eyes to all kinds of ideas, and I believe Prince’s message of fun and love in his songs is missed in the lexicon of modern music.
I would want him to perform at my party and lay down some purple love on the masses from his guitar and microphone. We would definitely party like it’s 1999 as the year 2019 morphs into 2020.
A Trump Voter.
“Make America Great Again”
Donald Trump’s campaign slogan
I bet as you read this, you are wondering why a Trump voter. Why not? As an American citizen, debate and free speech are the bedrocks of human rights in this country. I want to know why he/she voted for a man that openly admits abusing women.
“I can grab ’em by the Pussy.”
I want to know do you want a man to sexually assault your daughter, wife, sister, or mother in that manner. Do you think they would want a man touching them in that way? I don’t think so. If anything, he would be kicked in his nether regions and driven to his knees.
How can you stand by a man that openly supported racists during Charlottesville?
“There were good people on both sides.”
A woman was run down and killed in the prime of her life. Several people were beaten harshly by other human beings who wanted to protect monuments that openly support an institution that wanted to keep my ancestors in chains.
I would ask my visiting Trump voter why is the free press now vilified. In the days of Watergate, the media was the clarion call for justice. Nixon was called out for the crook he was and driven from office. Where is that free press now? Where are the ones holding this President accountable? I am not stating the media isn’t trying to mine the facts, but when a firestorm of fake news swirls around the President it’s hard to know what to believe.
Does he deserve impeachment for withholding aid to Ukraine for an investigation into a political rival? Was he abusing his power by asking favors contingent on releasing monies our ally so sorely needs? I want to hear his/her answers. I want to know how you defend a man who openly shits on the constitution and wipes his ass with democracy.
I want to hear the Trump voter’s defense of his vote, so I can have a more precise understanding of what is the attractiveness of this man. As I said before, freedom of speech is a right we hold most dear, and I want to give he/she the chance to speak at my New Year’s party.
The young Estacious(Charles White)
Whatever my situation is, I want to show that I’m not perfect, and perfect isn’t real. The youth need to know that, especially.
Keke Palmer
Yes, I understand the impossibility of this, but since everyone on my list is dead except for the Trump voter and cannot attend-why not myself 28 years ago.
I would drag his curious yet shy self into a corner speak to him about our life. I am sure he would have questions, but none will I answer.
Why? I don’t want to direct or divert his rollercoaster of a life. Yes, I know all the pitfalls to avoid, but I didn’t conjure him up to answer all his life questions but to give him a bit of advice.
I would tell my younger self not to allow anger to become his go-to for handling situations but to remain calm when life knocks him down
I would explain that all of the challenges that await him will create the man he sees before him today. And that each gray hair was hard-earned but taught valuable lessons which I don’t want to deprive him.
He will ask about his kids and wife. But I will tell him to wait, and she will come to you. She will be beautiful and excellent in all the ways a woman can be, and he will know it when he sees her.
The kids will take care of themselves. There will be challenges, but these will define him and add to his life experiences. He will help others with his tales of trouble and triumph.
Our career will have bumps, but we will make it past the trying times to a place where we will do our best work to help humanity. Don’t be discouraged in the dark days because trust there will always be a light to guide you to the end.
Finally, I want him to know as the above quote states we are not perfect and will make mistakes. Perfection is an illusion, and if we were perfect, how would we ever learn anything.
My list may be considered odd, but as most of my readers know, I tend to focus on ideas that have a human connection in some way or another. I wish I could speak to all of the people on my list. But alas, for the most part, that is a fantasy. Still, I believe the fantastical part is what made it a great writing exercise.
I would love to hear who Jun Wu Shannon Ashley Jenny Justice Michelle Monet Rajesh Vairapandian Marley K. and James Finn would invite to their parties. If you have written one already forgive me. Peace
Estacious(Charles White) is a 23-year educator. He began writing over 25 years ago. His work experience encompasses managing schools and teaching a variety of subjects. His passions are poetry, short fiction, playwrighting, and non-fiction. He won one of six prizes in the Rockford play festival for his play “Incarcerated Christmas”. He is married with three children and a native of New Orleans.