Hello all,

Today’s motivation comes from Eleanor Roosevelt:

“The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams. “
— Eleanor Roosevelt

Eleanor Roosevelt, our 32nd first lady, is a woman who truly did believe in the beauty of her dreams. When her husband took office in 1933, she had her own agenda and dreams to accomplish. She desired that new policies be enacted to help those less fortunate. Because of her dreams, Franklin D. Roosevelt (FDR) created the New Deal. She had dreams of seeing Marian Anderson, an African American operatic singer, perform publicly when the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) refused to allow her to perform at the Constitution Hall. Ms. Eleanor’s dream was realized and Anderson became the first operatic singer to ever perform on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. Mrs. Roosevelt even had dreams of seeing African American soldiers fight alongside their peers in WWII. By the time of the passing of her husband and with the assistance of activist Mary McLeod Bethune, our 33rd President, Harry S. Truman, would desegregate the US Military, thereby allowing blacks to fight. There are some historians that will even point out that during the untimely illness of FDR that Ms. Eleanor ran the country. While I have never seen any sound evidence to support that claim, its obvious that she did have influence over her husband and that many of his policies were due to her and her personal beliefs.

At the time of FDR’s passing in 1945, she was quoted as saying, “the story is over.” Now she could have her life end with the passing of her husband and ignore her dreams, but she didn’t. Within a year, she was appointed to the United Nations, a first for a First Lady. She remained active up until her death in 1962. She even advised future presidents. One of the most powerful photographs I’ve ever seen of her is with John F. Kennedy at her home, Val-Kill, and the two are heavily engaged in a conversation. Ms. Eleanor was certainly a dreamer and had it not been for her dreams, many people in this country and the world would have been greatly effected had she not been able to be as powerful and influential as she was.

There are some who say that dreamers like Ms. Eleanor can never change things. I disagree. No other First Lady before nor since Ms. Eleanor have had such an influence in or out of the White House. Not only did she mange to change things in her time but many of her reforms and their effects are still being felt today.

Are you a dreamer? If so, never underestimate your dreams. Your dreams have a certain beauty attached to them and like Ms. Eleanor, could have positive and powerful repercussions throughout the land. Where would we be today as a society if Ms. Eleanor had not dreamed and dared to defy her family, her wealthy societal background, and the role that was expected of her as a wife and a mother? Sometimes, being a dreamer does require one to step out on a limb and do what needs to be done. Ms. Eleanor took that chance and with great aplomb. Not only did she believe in the beauty of her dreams but also of the beauty of a great society. One in which all persons shared in great wealth and privilege.

Never never underestimate the beauty of your dreams. Remember, your dreams could become someone’s reality, besides your own.