Spirit and Resilience

Our national spirit is a function of our resilience. Resilience is the ability and courage to bounce back and try again when faced with change. Our greatest national example of this spirit and resilience is Abraham Lincoln. From log cabin and poverty to President - - he lost eight elections, failed in two businesses, and suffered a nervous breakdown. Here is the Lincoln story of resilience - -

1816 - - His parents were forced our of their home. He had to work to support them.
1818 - - His mother died.
1831 - - He failed in business.
1832 - - He ran for the state legislature and was defeated.
1832 - - He lost his job. He wanted to go to law school but couldn't get in.
1833 - - He borrowed money from a friend to begin a business and lost it all by the end of the year. He spent the next 17 years paying off his debt.
1834 - - He ran for the state legislature again and won.
1835 - - He was engaged to be married when his fiance died and his heart broken.
1836 - - He had a total nervous breakdown and was in bed for six months.
1838 - - He sought to become speaker of the state legislature and was defeated.
1840 - - He sought to become elector and was defeated.
1843 - - He ran for Congress and was defeated.
1846 - - He ran for Congress again and won. He went to Washington and did well.
1848 - - He ran for reelection to Congress and was defeated.
1849 - - He sought the job of land officer in his home state and was rejected.
1854 - - He ran for Senate of the United States and was defeated.
1856 - - He sought the vice presidential nomination of the party's national convention and got fewer than 100 votes.
1858 - - He ran for the U.S. Senate again and was defeated.
1860 - - He ran for and was elected, president of the United States.