CrazyBusy Mama! (Dot Calm)

Eleanor Roosevelt

Eleanor Roosevelt, born Anna Eleanor Roosevelt in 1884, was the niece of President Theodore “Teddy” Roosevelt. As a child, she was shy, awkward, and starved for attention, having lost both parents at a young age. She seemed, however, destined for greatness, and wrote the following at age 14: “…no matter how plain a woman may be, if truth and loyalty are stamped upon her face, all will be attracted to her.”

She gained confidence at a girls’ school in England and, shortly after returning home, drew the attention of a distant cousin: Franklin Delano Roosevelt. The two were married in 1905, with her Uncle Teddy giving her away in her father’s stead.

In 1921, several years after Franklin entered the world of politics, he was paralyzed by polio. Eleanor never left his side, and did what she could to keep his interest in politics alive. He became President of the United States in 1933. Besides being her husband’s constant companion, Eleanor transformed the role of First Lady by giving press conferences, lectures and radio broadcasts, and even had a daily newspaper column called, “My Day.”

Besides having been First Lady and the wife of FDR, Eleanor Roosevelt is very well known for this famous quote: “No one can make you feel inferior without your permission.”

©2009 Sally Dinius
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Highly Recommended:

You Learn by Living: Eleven Keys for a More Fulfilling Life, by Eleanor Roosevelt. One of the most admired people of the twentieth century, Eleanor Roosevelt remains a role model for a life well lived. At the age of seventy-six, just two years before her death, Roosevelt penned this simple guide toward a more fulfilling life. The commonsense ideas and heartfelt ideals presented in this volume are as relevant today as they were five decades ago. (Amazon)

The Autobiography Of Eleanor Roosevelt, by Eleanor Roosevelt. “Mrs. Roosevelt’s autobiography is above all the portrait of a person. The history it gives is history as she has seen it — not in the round but directly, with her clear and candid eye. Since, however, she has seen so much and from so central a point of vision, her reflections on our world and on our human prospects have more than an autobiographical interest. She is a very wise woman, and it would be correspondingly unwise not to take notice of her hopes — and fears.” -Barbara Ward (Amazon)