Happy Birthday George

During a three-day visit to Philadelphia, I toured Congress Hall, Independence Hall and Carpenter’s Hall—restored buildings that tell the secrets of where and how the Declaration of Independence was written and where the first presidency was carried out.

I felt a sense of awe as I gazed at the elaborate silver inkstand used to sign the Declaration of Independence more than two hundred years earlier, and then ran my hand down the very same wooden banister on the same stairway George Washington used in Independence Hall during his two terms as president from 1789 to 1797. From 1790 to 1800, the nation’s capitol was in Philadelphia, while Washington, D.C. was being built.

What amazed me most about my trip through American history was Washington’s humility. Our guide told us that the people of Philadelphia built an elaborate palace for Washington outside the city for him to live in while he was president. Yet he refused to live in it, feeling his place was among the people. He also refused to serve more than two terms as president even though he would have been easily reelected to a third term. Rather than follow the example of England’s monarchs who ruled for their lifetime, Washington felt that no U.S. president should be in power more than eight years. In a precedent-setting act of humility, in the face of many struggles during his presidency, after just two terms, he stepped down and, in effect, handed the presidency to John Adams.

That visit to Philadelphia taught me that the struggles of leadership are framed in acts of humility. I also learned that humility is a very appealing characteristic in a human. I’m going to practice it today in honor of George Washington. I’ll do something quietly for someone else without any big announcement. I suspect that if we humble ourselves by being servants to those we love, perhaps we’ll be revered the way Washington was revered by his countrymen.