Inspiration Found in Eleanor Roosevelt

"A Woman is like a tea bag - You can't tell how strong she is until you put her in hot water."
     --Eleanor Roosevelt

White House Portrait

Contemplating how I deal with being under pressure has made me realize that I fair pretty well, even when things look like they are so bleak and I can't see a way out. Let us consider Eleanor Roosevelt as some inspiration. First of all, Eleanor lost her parents at a very young age. Her mother died from Diptheria and her father from Alchoholism. She spent her youth with her maternal grandmother where she was starved for attention. Eleanor did not consider herself attractive and often suffered from depression. She eventually married her 5th cousin, Franklin Roosevelt, only to discover his mother, her Mother-in-Law, Sara, was a huge pain in the ass. Her husband then had a couple of very torrid and well publicized affairs, including the one with Lucy Mercer. Eleanor knew hot water, that is for certain.

Though widely respected in her later years, Roosevelt was a controversial First Lady for her outspokenness, particularly her stands on racial issues. She was the first presidential spouse to hold press conferences, write a syndicated newspaper column, and speak at a national convention. On a few occasions, she publicly disagreed with her husband's policies. She launched an experimental community at Arthurdale, West Virginia, for the families of unemployed miners, later widely regarded as a failure. She advocated for expanded roles for women in the workplace, the civil rights of African Americans and Asian Americans, and the rights of World War II refugees.

(Source: Wikipedia) 

 After her husband died, Eleanor continued to be active in politics. She encouraged the US to join the UN and was one of the first delegates. She fought for equality of women in both pay and position. She took part in the creation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. In 1999 she was listed by Gallup as one of the most influential women in America. She was a feminist at heart and a powerful, outspoken American.

Eleanor was the mother to 6 children, wife to a President, and went on to do many, many things to fight racial and sex discrimination, she fought for those less fortunate, and she inspired many women to take up a cause.

A brilliant woman with many great accomplishments, it is clear that Eleanor was a strong cup of tea!