“The probability we may fail in the struggle ought not to deter us from the support of a cause we believe to be just.” — Abraham Lincoln

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Thoughts on Today’s Quote

How many times I’ve stated support for a cause and been me with ‘forget it, it will never happy’. I can’t count them all.

All too often people will shy away from supporting a cause because they believe too many forces are arrayed against it ever succeeding.

Our history is littered with so many seemingly impossible issues which became possible because people saw fit to support the cause at all costs.

The abolition of slavery in the United States was one of those seemingly impossible causes. The Civil Rights movement, while having to fight battle after battle to gradually win their rights, found success in the face of arrests, lynchings, beatings etc.

• The Berlin Wall was brought down, reuniting the two Germanys.
• Apartheid in South Africa was brought to a halt.
• The Residential School system in Canada was ended.
• Universal Health Care was implemented in Canada
• The Americans put a man on the moon

They are but a few examples of causes taken on that seemed impossible but happened through determination and perseverance.

How about in your own life? What causes have you discarded as impossible?

The cause could be something in your community, an organization or even your family.

Did you shy away because you were discouraged by others or did you just lack the courage to stand up and say, “this needs to happen”?

It takes a lot of courage to be the person that puts the bold idea out there. It’s often amazing how many people already agree but lack the courage to say so.

Someone needs to be first and then there needs to be will to push forward in the face of opposition.

What improbable just cause are you wanting to make happen?

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Who is Abraham Lincoln?

Abraham Lincoln was born in Hardin county, Kentucky on Feb 12, 1809. He would grow up to become the 16th President of the United States and regarded as one of the greatest, hailed as being the saviour of the Union and the emancipation of slaves.

The family moved to Perry County, Indiana in 1817. His mother died when he was nine years old. Her death placed a lot of hard work on his young shoulders for which he quietly resented his father. About a year later his father remarried.

Lincoln bonded with his step-mother who encouraged young Lincoln to learn to read. He became a voracious reader and would walk miles to borrow a book. He received only about eighteen months of formal education. He self-educated himself through his reading.

At 22 his father decided to move the family again. Lincoln decide to go out on his own. By then he was 6’4” in height, rawboned, lanky, physically strong, spoke with a backwoods twang and walked with a long-striding gait. He became known for his skill in wielding an axe and for a time he made his living splitting wood for fire and rail fencing.

He settled in Salem, Illinois where he worked as a shopkeeper, postmaster general and eventually a general store owner. It was during this time that he acquired his social skills and honed his storytelling talents.

When the Black Hawk war broke out in 1832 Lincoln became a local captain. He didn’t see any combat but he did make political connections. In 1834 he was elected to the Illinois state legislature which began his political career.

About this time he decided to become a lawyer through self-teaching himself by reading William Blackstone’s “Commentaries on the Law of England”. He was called to the bar in 1837, moving to Springfield, Illinois to begin practice law at the firm of John T Start. In 1844 he went into partnership with William Herndan to practice law.

He served a single term in the US House of representatives from 1847-49. During this time he spoke out against the Mexican-American War which lost him support at home. He decided not to run for a second term and returned to practicing law.

Lincoln viewed slavery as not a moral wrong but an economic impediment to development. In 1856 he joined the Republican party. By then his views on slavery had moved to that of moral indignation.

In 1857 the US Supreme court issued a ruling that African Americans weree not citizens nor did they have any inherent rights. Lincoln didn’t believe blacks were equal to whites but he did believe the founders intended all men were created with certain inalienable rights.

Lincoln decided to run against Stephen Douglas for the US Senate. Seven debates took place across Illinois during the campaign. They were intense debates drawing wide attendance and notice in the media. Lincoln lost the election but his place in national politics was established.

By 1860 a group of Republicans organized a campaign to present Lincoln as the candidate for president. He won the nomination with is moderate views on slavery, support for improving the national infrastructure and the protective tariff He won the election with 40% of the popular vote and 180 or 303 Electoral college votes.

But, the support was all in the north. Before the inauguration in March 1861 seven southern states seceded from the Union and formed the Confederacy. In April 1861 they attached Fort Sumter and the Civil War was underway.

Lincoln responded by wielding power as no other president had. He distributed funds for the war effort from the Treasury without Congressional approval. He called up civilians for volunteer service without a declaration of war. He suspended habeas corpus and arrested suspected Confederate sympathizers without warrants.

He faced opposition from all sides. In 1863 Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, freeing the slaves in the rebellious states if they could get to safe haven with the north. The war effort improved gradually but the Confederacy hadn’t suffered a significant defeat.

Lincoln expected to be a one term president but won handily with a 55% popular vote and 212 of 243 Electoral College votes. In April 1865 Confederate General Lee surrendered to Union General Grant, effectively ending the Civil War.

Lincoln favoured quick reunification with a minimum of retribution. A radical group of Republicans in both houses wanted complete allegiance and repentance from former Confederates. A political struggle was forming.

Before the struggle could get underway Lincoln was assassinated by Confederate sympathizer John Wilkes Booth while he was viewing a play at the Ford’s Theatre in Washington, DC on April 19, 1865.

Lincoln left behind his wife Mary and son Robert, who was the only one of their children to live to adulthood.

*I will try to find information on the author of the quotes I share. I wont always be successful.

Don’t know about you, but I find it interesting to know who the person was that anyone took the time to record or quote that person.*

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About Coffee Time Meditation

I love being inspired by other people’s quotes. I thought I’d start sharing some quotes that inspire me along with my own thoughts the quote evokes within me. So, think of someone, like me, sitting quietly with the first fresh coffee of the day and mediating about the words of the quote. That would be me, or it could be you.

I invite you to share your own thoughts on the quote in the comments.

If you like this series, please upvote it and share with others.

Have a great day
Path to Success

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Past Coffee Time Meditations

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