Thursday, November 04, 2010

Gratitude Day 4: Our Founding Fathers (and Mother's, let's not forget them!)


I'm not an intellectualmajigger thingy, so you'll have to take this gratitude post with a grain of kosher salt.

Today, two days after election day since you were all probably blasted with election this and election that, I am grateful for my founding fathers.

Let me elaborate.

I'm grateful for the miles and miles they would ride on horseback, in the snow and rain, in the blistering, humid heat, away from their wives and mistresses and many, many children, to all gather together and protect the rights of the people.

I'm grateful for their sacrifice.  You know, many of them had jobs, like teaching or preaching or lawyering it up, and lawyers in that day weren't the Purana's they are today.  They actually did some good.  They had to leave those jobs.  I'm pretty sure they didn't get paid time off.

I'm grateful for the women they married.  The more I learn about the wives of the first five presidents, the more I realize that it was the strength of the women who stood behind them that made this country so great.  They had input, you know, into what happened with politics in those days.  Now-a-day they're just concerned about what dress suit to wear, whether they need a refreshing of the botox, and if their husbands mistress was gonna show up to the party.

I wish we could go back.  When there was no such thing as muckraking.  Where it wasn't a matter of which politician was having an affair, because they were real back then.  They knew they were all having affairs*.  When it was about the issues.  When they would make concerted efforts to make change, and not focus 70% of their time thinking about how they were going to get reelected.

When famous debates were held for the modern people.  On soap boxes.  In town squares.  With no shoes up hill both ways.  Wait...

Anyway, I would love to go into detail about the women who owned indigo farms, who ran entire towns, who found homes for orphans and who propagated slave rights long before it was fashionable, and who meant it.  Or about the women who forged ahead for womens suffrage.  You know, we've only been allowed to vote for 90 short years.  But, for your sake, I'll stop here.

Just know how grateful I am for those God fearing men.  I know the Lord sponsored them in their endeavors.  I know they had weaknesses and follies, but that's the cool thing about then.  It was okay to not be perfect.

Thank you, Founding Fathers, for at least trying to get this country started out on the right foot.  Sorry if we've screwed it up.

Kelly Out

*I don't condone these affairs.  I'm just sayin'.

3 comments:

Lindsay said...

Love it. So true. I can't believe it's just been 90 years. Have you ever seen "Iron Jawed Angels"? With Hilary Swank? It's one of my favorites - it's about suffrage and I love it. But anyway, I too am grateful for our founding fathers. Thanks for this post!

Kimberly said...

Ahhh the statement about not being perfect and that is ok...I wish that were true today.

PrincessJulia said...

You said it better than any Historian evern has or ever will. Thanks for sharing the thoughts of your heart.

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