Preface: Eleanor Roosevelt

Personally, I'm not a fan of the concept of a hero. American culture fixates on the idea that we have to be exactly like those we deem to be heroes. (what is that infamous Oscar Wilde quote? "Be yourself, everyone else is already taken") Instead, I have a small group of individuals I admire. I define admiration as being of certain character traits that showcase living up to the most moral and ethical ways of existing. Eleanor Roosevelt is at the top of my short list.

Eleanor Roosevelt was the First Lady to end all First Ladies. She was the first to show a genuine interest in the people of the United States and made significant effort to travel and learn of various people's misfortunes and adversities, with the intent of influencing her husband, President Franklin D. Roosevelt, to adapt legislation and policies to assist those in need to get back on track and stimulate the overall economy during The Great Depression. This existential work would not have happened had Eleanor herself not dealt with significant adversity in her early years. Even someone of her caliber struggled with mental health, but I would argue it made her stronger than she would likely ever admit...