Abraham Lincoln was born 199 years ago, on Feb. 12, 1809. What would he say if he were alive today? Probably something like, “HELP! HELP! IT’S HOT IN HERE! I CAN’T BREATHE!” Sorry. I couldn’t resist.
I have a bit of hero worship with respect to Lincoln. I went so far as to name my first born son after him. (His first name is “Lincoln,” but his walking around nickname is “Cole”). His presence at the helm of the Union was, to put it mildly, fortuitous. He was a gifted politician and a deep thinker with a common touch who loved his country dearly. A buddy of mine who wasn’t an overly zealous student and went to a parochial school used to joke that, when he was stumped in a literature class, he could usually get through it by describing one figure or another as the book’s “Christ figure.” Well, Lincoln is America’s Christ figure. With extraordinary gifts and appealing humility, Mr. Lincoln saved the country from itself and was killed for his efforts.
I know that, upon close review, Lincoln had his warts like we all do. But history has dimmed the negatives and enhanced the positives, and I’m o.k. with that. After all, a boy needs his heroes. So far, I have Abraham Lincoln and my grandpa. I’m not prepared to go looking for faults in either one of them.
Happy birthday Mr. Lincoln!
News From: http://www.masson.us/blog/?p=2890
No comments:
Post a Comment