Monday Moments - All In by Billie Jean King

Wow is all I can say about this autobiography - ALL IN.

  Billie Jean King is flat out an amazing woman. 

cover blurb - This inspiring and intimate self  portrait by her, the champion of equality, that encompasses her brilliant tennis career and unwavering commitment to social justice even as she was engaged in a private struggle to publicly and unequivocally be her true self. 

I dog eared so many pages in ALL IN. Billie Jean King was raised in a loving family, she worked hard at tennis, and she was a rebel who kept asking, "Why? and Why not?" in regards to women - pay, attention, freedom, etc. So much occurred against the backdrop of the civil rights movement, women's movement, the Cold War, 1960s protests, and LGBTQ+ rights movements. She struggled to be authentic and her health suffered at times. 

But she was at the right place at the right time and just never said no. She has a spirit that shines the light for so many and she continues to fight today for equity and inclusion. 

p.376 If you're in the business of change, you have to be prepared to play the long game.  

She also asks, "When this is done, will we have helped make the world a better place?"

Oh Billie  - yes you have.  As Elton John wrote in the song Philadelphia Freedom (her tennis team)- Shine the light, oh shine the light...

She still is!