CAN THE PRESIDENTS INFLUENCE OUR PERSONAL LIVES?
Years ago I thought of our presidents as a bunch of stuffy, strange leaders who I couldn’t really relate to in my own personal life. I had no personal connection or interest in these funny looking leaders, some in their powdered wigs. (That’s not to say I was here in the powdered wig days). But that has all changed for me. Maybe it’s the media exposure with close-ups of the presidents and families exposing every intimate detail of their lives and the intense criticisms they suffer through in a free country. But the real turning point for me in realizing that I can relate to a lot of these great men came when I read 2 award winning books by my now favorite author, David McCullough. His biography, “John Adams” has more drama in it than almost anything I’ve read or seen. All the men and women of his time came alive ---Washington, Jefferson, and others. Their lives were daily at stake with the British ready to kill within a few miles. I hated to see the book end. I knew these people. The courage and devotion of Abigail Adams, his wife, blew me away. So on I rushed to read, “Truman”, (a Pulitzer Prize winner). . I hadn’t known much about him either, but learned he came from ordinary, middle-class stock, had a failed business and turned out to be a real tough guy when he needed to be. (“The buck stops here.”)
I began to wonder what kind of qualities the great presidents (never mind the failures and scandal ridden ones) had that had carried them so far in life. Could I apply some of these traits to my simple life? On I’ve read these last few years, with great hunger. Books on Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, FDR, Reagan, Madison and even Churchill. I am enormously impressed with the obstacles most of them had to overcome. For example, Theodore Roosevelt was so sickly with asthma as a child that he couldn’t go to public school or play with the other kids. But, oh, boy, he could read! He turned those lemons into lemonade. In later life he wrote 26 books! He was a recognized hero in the Spanish-American War with more daring than most. He overcame personal loss when his wife and mother died on the same day and an assassination was attempted on him. We credit him for the Panama Canal, millions of acres of national parks, and a Nobel Peace Prize. Some overcomer, this guy. I admire FDR who had to hide his crippled legs from the public since, in those days, it was regarded as weakness. He struggled with painful braces so he could stand before the public. Maybe I, with fewer problems than this, can be an overcomer too.
Then I think of those who did what they thought was right regardless of the great consequence to their own lives. Our beloved Lincoln. Nothing going for him at first glance. Homely, poor, uneducated. From nothing he rose, got an education, sometimes reading by candlelight. Even had to learn how to dress properly because the first national leaders laughed out loud at his ugly, too small clothes. But nothing stopped him.
We know that life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans. No president knows what his years in office will bring. But the greats rise to the challenge. Lincoln hardly had a moment of peace in his life. He was hated by those who favored slavery. But he did what he thought was right knowing his life was at risk It did cost him his life. I pray to be that courageous. No, I won’t be leading a nation, but, in my heart I can resolve to do the right thing not matter the cost.
I’m struck with the devoted marriages I’ve read about. Wealthy Martha Washington left her beautiful home to join her husband in the snowy battlefields to help out. The devotion we’ve seen in the eyes of Nancy Reagan nursing her man until death took him. Laura Bush, a quiet librarian who vowed she’d never speak publicly, out there campaigning for her man. Abigail Adams running the farm alone for years, (with the British close by) while her man helped found a nation. I can resolve to be that kind of devoted wife. They had it much tougher than I.
Finally, and most important of all, these great men and their women showed enormous leadership
qualities. They were willing to take the heat. That’s not to say they were never afraid. But they pressed on anyway, leading the charge. I can do that, if they did. We can do that. We can step up to the plate even when it’s scarey, and make necessary decisions for our families and community when needed and even lead the charge when necessary. In fact, we can even do it in their honor.
Wow! What a lot I’ve learned just snuggling down in bed at night and reading before I go to sleep! I will keep it up! I can use a little inspiration! I’ll bet you can too! These presidents can have a profound effect on our own personal lives today!
Years ago I thought of our presidents as a bunch of stuffy, strange leaders who I couldn’t really relate to in my own personal life. I had no personal connection or interest in these funny looking leaders, some in their powdered wigs. (That’s not to say I was here in the powdered wig days). But that has all changed for me. Maybe it’s the media exposure with close-ups of the presidents and families exposing every intimate detail of their lives and the intense criticisms they suffer through in a free country. But the real turning point for me in realizing that I can relate to a lot of these great men came when I read 2 award winning books by my now favorite author, David McCullough. His biography, “John Adams” has more drama in it than almost anything I’ve read or seen. All the men and women of his time came alive ---Washington, Jefferson, and others. Their lives were daily at stake with the British ready to kill within a few miles. I hated to see the book end. I knew these people. The courage and devotion of Abigail Adams, his wife, blew me away. So on I rushed to read, “Truman”, (a Pulitzer Prize winner). . I hadn’t known much about him either, but learned he came from ordinary, middle-class stock, had a failed business and turned out to be a real tough guy when he needed to be. (“The buck stops here.”)
I began to wonder what kind of qualities the great presidents (never mind the failures and scandal ridden ones) had that had carried them so far in life. Could I apply some of these traits to my simple life? On I’ve read these last few years, with great hunger. Books on Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, FDR, Reagan, Madison and even Churchill. I am enormously impressed with the obstacles most of them had to overcome. For example, Theodore Roosevelt was so sickly with asthma as a child that he couldn’t go to public school or play with the other kids. But, oh, boy, he could read! He turned those lemons into lemonade. In later life he wrote 26 books! He was a recognized hero in the Spanish-American War with more daring than most. He overcame personal loss when his wife and mother died on the same day and an assassination was attempted on him. We credit him for the Panama Canal, millions of acres of national parks, and a Nobel Peace Prize. Some overcomer, this guy. I admire FDR who had to hide his crippled legs from the public since, in those days, it was regarded as weakness. He struggled with painful braces so he could stand before the public. Maybe I, with fewer problems than this, can be an overcomer too.
Then I think of those who did what they thought was right regardless of the great consequence to their own lives. Our beloved Lincoln. Nothing going for him at first glance. Homely, poor, uneducated. From nothing he rose, got an education, sometimes reading by candlelight. Even had to learn how to dress properly because the first national leaders laughed out loud at his ugly, too small clothes. But nothing stopped him.
We know that life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans. No president knows what his years in office will bring. But the greats rise to the challenge. Lincoln hardly had a moment of peace in his life. He was hated by those who favored slavery. But he did what he thought was right knowing his life was at risk It did cost him his life. I pray to be that courageous. No, I won’t be leading a nation, but, in my heart I can resolve to do the right thing not matter the cost.
I’m struck with the devoted marriages I’ve read about. Wealthy Martha Washington left her beautiful home to join her husband in the snowy battlefields to help out. The devotion we’ve seen in the eyes of Nancy Reagan nursing her man until death took him. Laura Bush, a quiet librarian who vowed she’d never speak publicly, out there campaigning for her man. Abigail Adams running the farm alone for years, (with the British close by) while her man helped found a nation. I can resolve to be that kind of devoted wife. They had it much tougher than I.
Finally, and most important of all, these great men and their women showed enormous leadership
qualities. They were willing to take the heat. That’s not to say they were never afraid. But they pressed on anyway, leading the charge. I can do that, if they did. We can do that. We can step up to the plate even when it’s scarey, and make necessary decisions for our families and community when needed and even lead the charge when necessary. In fact, we can even do it in their honor.
Wow! What a lot I’ve learned just snuggling down in bed at night and reading before I go to sleep! I will keep it up! I can use a little inspiration! I’ll bet you can too! These presidents can have a profound effect on our own personal lives today!
posted by Ann Baker, Realtor at
7:31 PM
