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28 Marching orders Another hectic morning—what do i cook? How many servings of grits do i make? Who eats eggs and cooked which way? Then the answer tothesequestionssuddenlycame.Cookwhatyouhave and hope it works for everyone. So i cooked a big pot of grits, fried several twopound packages of bacon and several other pounds of sausage, boiled some eggs and scrambled several dozen others, and baked dozens of prepared breakfast rolls. i had to break my lifelong practice, as there were simply too many people to serve for me to have time to make homemade biscuits. i put all the food on the table and hoped for the best. it disappeared in a matter of minutes. Who all ate that morning i cannot testify to, but they all found me to say thanks for a wonderful breakfast. Then on to the next chore, which was cleaning up after the big breakfast. Stuff was everywhere! Thanks again to Dora and other staff who helped get the house in order for the next round of events. everybodydressedandreceivedlast-minutereports,withthephone ringing and the doorbell about to come off the wall and reporters trying to get in the whole time. Thank God i did not pull door duty that day! Some of the people in the house began to move on to the church and get a feel of what was going on and to mingle with the people. Marching orders / 129 Coretta and Juanita came early in the morning to join their husbands on the big day. i was truly glad to see them because their presence meant four more hands to help, and help they did. i remember all of us in our master bedroom while Ralph and Martin put on their marching boots. The air was once again happy, everyone was joking and feeling upbeat. Ralph was given a box with a new pair of marching boots and Martin was given his box. Martin turned to Ralph and said, “Ralph, you have the wrong box, these boots are too large for me, they must be yours since you have big feet.” Ralph replied to Martin, “With these boots being new, before this day is over you will wish you were in the shoebox!” and everyone fell out with laughter. All worries were put on the back burner for just a little while. everybody was ready, pictures were taken, and all the staff had been given the “go” sign. now on to the church. The ladies and i made a path through the house one last time. i knew Martin had to fly out that night, and i also knew i had to get back home to prepare for those who would be returning to the house that evening. everybody finally left the house for the church to attend the enormous mass meeting where everybody was given their marching orders . Three hundred people had been selected as those who would marchtheentirefifty-mileroute,andtheywereseparatedfromeveryone else. There was no way for everyone to fit into the church. The rest of us gathered outside the church to witness for ourselves the mass of humanity that had gathered. i demanded to go this time and i insisted that i would march. bullhorns had to be used to communicate what to do to the mass of people outside. never before had i seen so many people. Counting the people was simply impossible, and the reporters had to guess. i have read various accounts of the number over the years, but no one really knows because throughout the day people continued to come. All lined up, we finally started for the bridge and then began the 130 / Chapter 28 crossing. i smiled to myself as i passed white men whose faces had beenredandtwistedfromshouting ugly namesjustafewdaysearlier but now were standing quietly, and lawmen who were now there to protect us. What an irony. All in their uniforms, clean-faced, guns at their sides ready to protect us! i wondered what they must be feeling and thinking. Sometimes people have mixed emotions. in their hearts they know what is right—or do they? Some of them also believe they must follow the majority for their own safety. They are bound by dictates of their own environment, just as we are in ours but for different reasons. Their beliefs are taught from birth. When children are fed from birth a steady diet of hate and indifference, that nourishment becomes part of their very being. Their parents, the extended family, and even...

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