Black MYSTERY Month!

Well it's February and that means another Black History Month, that time of year when we learn about the great contributions black people have made to America throughout our history.

Simple enough.

But let's face it - Black History Month is NOT for black people! It's for white people. Black people are already interested in their history, but we white people need to be reminded from time to time about the richness of our cultural diversity.

Especially if we live in Chesterfield or St. Peters or (gasp!) NEW TOWN IN ST. CHARLES, or as I like to call it, "Whiteyville".

The problem is that the word "History" reminds people too much of school, and that's a big bummer.

So I've come up with a solution. We change the name to:

BLACK MYSTERY MONTH!

Who doesn't love a mystery? It sets up a great premise and you really wonder what's going to happen at the end of it! And if you're not careful, you just might learn something before it's done!

For example, we all know that George Washington Carver blazed new ground in agriculture, but by the time you get to, "George Washington Carver was an American Botanical..." I'm already asleep. But try THIS on for size:

Harriet Tubman getting you down?

Nancy Drew has the cure! Looks scary and I'm hoping poor Nancy can find out who's trying to stop the Underground Railroad before it's too late!

And who wouldn't be intrigued and enriched by the Hardy Boys' search for Rosa Parks?

Don't capsize the boat!

The point is to make learning fun and maybe someday we won't NEED a Black History Month, because it will just be HISTORY that we all know and more importantly, LOVE!

But I gotta go - Sherlock Holmes has just discovered Moriarty in Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s hometown!