Lincoln's Eyes
Today I am grateful for Oliver (our cockapoo) and his presence in our lives, as well as the way he teaches me to stay present in the moment.
I am also grateful that our travels last week allowed us the opportunity to see some historic and tourist attractions. We spent time in Springfield, Illinois and visited the Lincoln Museum and Presidential Library, the family gravesite, his law office, and we got a look at the Lincoln family home in Springfield, though we ran out of time before we got to tour the interior. I looked forward to this opportunity and I wasn't diappointed. (Other than the fact that I could have spent a few more hours looking around and reading details, compared to the rest of the family. They do speed tours compared to me.)
We spent the most time at the Lincoln Museum. It was very well-done with video presentations and a variety of exhibits. I would highly recommend it. As a person who has always enjoyed history and the social sciences, and even spent ten years teaching it to willing (and unwilling) high school students, I have had a special interest in the Civil War era and a special respect for the significance of Abraham Lincoln's time as our president.
He was president at an incredibly difficult time, and no matter what he did, he was going to have plenty of people opposing his actions. The toll his job took on him is shown clearly in a series of photographs taken from 1861 to 1865. The Union survived, but he didn't.
Lincoln not only knew a huge amount of sorrow as the president during the Civil War, he knew much personal sorrow, losing his mother at age 9, his first love, and two of his sons before his own death. His eyes tell you a lot about the man and the emotions he harbored. There are famous photos of Lincoln from the beginning of his presidency to just days before his death. He aged rapidly in those years. You can see it in his eyes and his entire face. I have included two photos below. The first is from 1860, the second is from 1865, just days before he was assassinated.
I am also grateful that our travels last week allowed us the opportunity to see some historic and tourist attractions. We spent time in Springfield, Illinois and visited the Lincoln Museum and Presidential Library, the family gravesite, his law office, and we got a look at the Lincoln family home in Springfield, though we ran out of time before we got to tour the interior. I looked forward to this opportunity and I wasn't diappointed. (Other than the fact that I could have spent a few more hours looking around and reading details, compared to the rest of the family. They do speed tours compared to me.)
We spent the most time at the Lincoln Museum. It was very well-done with video presentations and a variety of exhibits. I would highly recommend it. As a person who has always enjoyed history and the social sciences, and even spent ten years teaching it to willing (and unwilling) high school students, I have had a special interest in the Civil War era and a special respect for the significance of Abraham Lincoln's time as our president.
He was president at an incredibly difficult time, and no matter what he did, he was going to have plenty of people opposing his actions. The toll his job took on him is shown clearly in a series of photographs taken from 1861 to 1865. The Union survived, but he didn't.
Lincoln not only knew a huge amount of sorrow as the president during the Civil War, he knew much personal sorrow, losing his mother at age 9, his first love, and two of his sons before his own death. His eyes tell you a lot about the man and the emotions he harbored. There are famous photos of Lincoln from the beginning of his presidency to just days before his death. He aged rapidly in those years. You can see it in his eyes and his entire face. I have included two photos below. The first is from 1860, the second is from 1865, just days before he was assassinated.
His eyes strike me as deep and brooding, and full of sadness, but yet with a touch of a smile on his lips that reaches to his eyes. As stories from his life continue to tell us, he had a warm and humorous side. I saw evidence of that on a magnet in the gift shop at the museum. He said "If I had another face, do you think I would wear this one?"
Abraham Lincoln's face is famous and easily recognized. His place in history is significant and well-deserved. I am grateful for the opportunity to see Springfield, to learn more about Lincoln than what history books tell us, and for the chance to pay my respects at his final resting place.
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