I was like a tourist yesterday going to a landmark I had never been to right in my own backyard; well it was a two hour drive. Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s home in Hyde Park, New York. I’m not a museum person but I am a memoir person and love learning about people and how they lived; especially someone like President Roosevelt who despite being paralyzed from the waist down due to polio, went on to live a life most people could only dream of. Talk about transcending adversity and not giving in to limitations!
The other thoroughly intriguing person is Eleanor Roosevelt, as she too lived through tremendous challenges; hers being childhood losses (both her parents died when she was a child) and despite being very timid, fearful and insecure, went on to become an outspoken and fiercely passionate woman who lived a most meaningful, purposeful and authentic life. Talk about personal growth and pushing through fear and ones comfort zone!
I feel compelled to share with you some of her amazing quotes that are truly statements by which to live a rich and rewarding life:
“No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.”
“You must do the thing which you think you cannot do.”
“A woman is like a tea bag – you can’t tell how strong she is until you put her in hot water.”
“One’s philosophy is not best expressed in words; it is expressed in the choices one makes… and the choices we make are ultimately our responsibility.”
“The purpose of life is to live it, to taste experience to the utmost, to reach out eagerly and without fear for newer and richer experience.”
“Happiness is not a goal; it is a by-product.”
“Do one thing everyday that scares you.”
“The way to begin is to begin.”
“It is not more vacation we need – it is more vocation.”
“Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people.” (I was so excited to just find out that this quote, which I’ve been quoting for years and never knew who said it, is by ER. How foolish of me to have never bothered to look it up.)
“What could we accomplish if we knew we could not fail?”
Which quote resonates for you? I bought her book, You Learn by Living – a motivational book on living well with tidbits of her life interspersed. A guide to living an uplifting, exciting life, as she is big on curiosity, experiences and love of learning, to propel us to that ultimate adventure called Life.
