Today, February 29, is Leap Day, that extra twenty-four hours that we get once every four years. In a sense, the Leap Year gives us all the gift of extra time. It is up to us to decide how to use it. Thomas Jefferson warned his friend Francis Eppes to use time wisely, writing:
“Time is [...]
Monthly Archives: February 2008
On the Leap Year:
Friday, February 29, 2008
Today (February 27) in Thomas Jefferson’s History:
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
On February 27, 1821, Thomas Jefferson wrote to Timothy Pickering from Monticello:
“As the Creator has made no two faces alike, so no two minds, and probably no two creeds.”
Today (February 22) in Thomas Jefferson’s History:
Friday, February 22, 2008
On February 22, 1814, Thomas Jefferson wrote to John Manners:
“Nature has, in truth, produced units only through all her works. Classes, orders, genera, species are not of her work. Her creation is of individuals. No two animals are exactly alike; no two plants, nor even two leaves or blades of grass; no two crystallizations. And [...]
On President’s Day:
Sunday, February 17, 2008
On Monday, February 18, we celebrate President’s Day, to honor all the past presidents who have served the United States. Thomas Jefferson, who was our nation’s third president, would surely have appreciated such a holiday, since he knew that being president was often a difficult and thankless job, with many responsibilities. Jefferson had a vision [...]
Today (February 13) in Thomas Jefferson’s History:
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
On February 13, 1788, Thomas Jefferson wrote to C.W.F. Dumas from Paris about sightseeing:
“The few moments of leisure which I might have, I would employ in seeing things rather than men.”
On Black History Month:
Saturday, February 9, 2008
Although he owned slaves himself, Thomas Jefferson hoped that over time, the United States would find a way to abolish the system of slavery without destroying the economy of the South, which, in his day, relied heavily on slave labor. Jefferson had high hopes for the future of the African-American people. In 1791, [...]
Today (February 8) in Thomas Jefferson’s History:
Friday, February 8, 2008
On February 8, 1786, Thomas Jefferson wrote to the Reverend James Madison from Paris:
“The politics of Europe render it indispensably necessary that with respect to every thing external we be one nation only, firmly looped together.”
Today (February 7) in Thomas Jefferson’s History:
Thursday, February 7, 2008
On February 7, 1788, Thomas Jefferson wrote to the Commissioners of the Treasury from Paris, discussing public credit:
“Tho’ much an enemy to the system of borrowing, yet I feel strongly the necessity of preserving the power to borrow.”
On politics and the election:
Monday, February 4, 2008
Tomorrow, February 5, twenty-four states will hold their primary elections in the presidential race of 2008. Dubbed Super Tuesday, this day will help decide which candidates go on to the national election and which will have to abandon their dreams of becoming president of the United States. Different states will hold different types of primary [...]