Celebrating Thomas Jefferson's Birthday

As an individual with a great love for The United States of America and the principles it was founded upon, I wanted to take this opportunity to say a special thank-you to a man who made a profound impact on the creation of this revolutionary country. The men who founded this country were truly dreamers! They dreamed of a new sort of country where the people had control over their own futures and they did it! 

Thomas Jefferson was born April 13 in 1743 in Virginia. He was the author of the Declaration of Independence and the third president of the United States of America. As I am no history expert and I would never claim to be. So, I want to refer to a book that I use to help introduce my children to the profound history of our great country. It is called The American Patriot's Almanac and it's written by William J. Bennett and John T.E. Cribb. This book has a daily listing of American Historical events and the ode to Jefferson contained within it's pages is something that each of us, as Americans, should think deeply about. This passage was not actually the work of the authors of this book. The passage comes from Franklin D. Roosevelt when they dedicated the Jefferson Memorial to Thomas Jefferson:

"Today, in the midst of a great war for freedom, we dedicate a shrine to freedom... 

(Jefferson) faced the fact that men who will not fight for liberty can lose it. We, too, have faced that fact...

He lived in a world in which freedom of conscience and freedom of mind were battles still to be fought through - not principles already accepted of all men. We, too, have lived in such a world...

He loved peace and loved libery - yet on more than one occasion he was forced to choose between them. We, too, have been compelled to make that choice... 

The Declaration of Independence and the very purposes of the American Revolution itself, while seeking freedoms, called for the abandonment of privileges...

Thomas Jefferson believed, as we believe, in Man. He believed, as we believe, that men are capable of their own government, and that no king, no tyrant, no dictator can govern for them as well as they can govern for themselves. 

He believed, as we believe, in certain inalienable rights. He, as we, saw those principles and freedoms challenged. He fought for them, as we fight for them...

The words which we have chosen for this Memorial speak Jefferson's noblest and most urgent meaning, and we are proud indeed to understand it and share it:

"I have sworn, upon the altar of God, eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man.""

These principles that Jefferson swore to uphold are the very reasons America is a great country for free men and women of moral conscience to live freely without control over your thoughts. We would be wise to remember these words as we enter a period of uncertainty.

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Sara F. Hathaway

Sara F. Hathaway is the author of the The Changing Earth Series: Day After Disaster and Without Land. She also hosts The Changing Earth Podcast which blends her fictional stories with educational survival tips. Sara grew up in the country where she developed a profound interest in the natural world around her. After graduating with honors from The California State University of Sacramento with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, she launched into a career in business management. In her fictional novels her research and experience with survival techniques and forgotten life-sustaining methods of the generations past come to the forefront in a action packed adventures. She has used her background in business management to pave new roads for fictional authors to follow and she delights in helping other achieve the same success. She currently lives with her husband and two sons in California where she is at work on the sequel to her first two novels. For more information and a free copy of “The Go-Bag Essentials” featuring everything you need to have to leave your home in a disaster visit: www.authorsarafhathaway.com

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