Dinner with Thomas Jefferson by David

Dinner with Thomas Jefferson by David - October 2017 Scholarship Essay

If I could have dinner with any president, I would choose Thomas Jefferson. Although talking to other presidents like Abraham Lincoln to hear of his Civil War efforts or Barack Obama for our common interest in sports would be incredible, all the stories I read and heard about Jefferson made me most interested in him. The stories I read of his passion for so many different hobbies and activities amazed me. His perspective on different topics would also be very fascinating.
Known as a true Renaissance man, Jefferson could speak 6 languages, was knowledgeable in writing, economics, mathematics, and philosophy, and was an inventor, lawyer, and educator. Our dinner conversation would never end! My achievements and interests, although nowhere near as vast or as accomplished, are similar to his. Being of Korean descent, I can speak both English and Korean. My favorite subject in school is math, and oftentimes, my favorite part about it is how logical everything really is. Philosophy is also very interesting to me as I love to hear different viewpoints and things I’ve never thought of. I can only imagine how many things Jefferson could bring up that I would be completely clueless about.
Obviously, there is a lot of drama nowadays in the United States over various issues like violence and racism. While it would take a while to get Jefferson up to speed on everything going on in the world and could possibly end up being a fruitless endeavor, I would love to hear Jefferson’s opinions on the divisions that plague our nation today. Listening to his ideas for how we could solve some of these issues could help me see things in a different light, and it would be a great opportunity. Additionally, the rise of social media has played a big part in our ableness to interact with the president, but has also acted as a way for presidents to be scrutinized more than ever. Discussing topics about social media and his thoughts on it would be particularly interesting to me as I use social media everyday.
Ultimately, having dinner with Thomas Jefferson would be both informative and enjoyable. His passions for so many different things are truly inspiring. Jefferson was also known for being very opinionated. His strong viewpoints could help me meditate on my own views. I would consider other presidents, of course, but Jefferson would be my top choice to have dinner with.