Thomas Jefferson Autobiography by Maceo

Thomas Jefferson Autobiography by Maceo - October 2020 Scholarship Essay

Since Covid started, I have had a chance to re-read one of my most favorite books. The book being the autobiography of Thomas Jefferson. I choose this book because I felt like I needed some inspiration and where better to get it from than my role model. I believe that it is befitting that a man who never had a father found one in a founding father of this nation. I do refer to this book as being the liter fluid that ignited my passion to pursue greatness. I was never a fan of reading prior to being Eighteen years of age. However, upon completion of that book, I became voracious. I wanted to be like him so much. I read about the great accomplishments he had, the great victories, and even the humiliating failures and trials. Though his achievements are otherworldly, he was certainly human. He had vices such as man does, and it is precisely due to this that I admire him so greatly. He pushed himself constantly and when met with failure he did not grovel and give in. He chooses to push on and to persevere.
I believe that the Thomas Jefferson autobiography reveals a few things about my character. All of which mainly come from Jefferson since I am incredibly influenced by him. The first trait I learned is that is crucial to be pragmatic. If one would throw pragmatism to the wind and pursue idealism in its entirety, they are likely to be disappointed. However, if one may be a pragmatic idealist with courage to execute then all is possible. Jefferson was pragmatic about what he could do and what he could not do. However, the greatest ability is to know when to push the boundary of pragmatism and idealism and to see if they may overlap.
Thomas Jefferson became personal for me because he gave my ambition something to conquer. I love challenges and following in his wake is something I do wish to do. I believe why I love the text so much is because it gave me something to chase. It gave me a purpose, something to stake my ideals and ambitions on. He studied for hours a day during college. He wrote one of my favorite documents of all time being the declaration of Independence. There is an absolute splendid part in the book detailing about the ratification of it. In the ratification, Jefferson is setting there and is just being censured constantly and without remorse. Yet, he holds it together enough on the outside to walk away with a completed edited work. On the inside, I am sure he was churning with an unimaginable pain. Another quality that I got from Thomas Jefferson is the ability to agree to disagree. I believe that now more than ever, that the ability to agree to disagree is a superpower. It is especially crucial for me because I run a podcast and a political publication. I have people on both sides of the aisle and hear some pretty wild takes. However, I do not find myself to be angry or wanting to shout. I instead like to hear their opinion and why they think like that. By doing so I can bolster friendships everywhere and continue to learn.
Thomas Jefferson is the father that I never had, however I do wish to emulate his gift and achieve greatness.
I enjoyed the book greatly because it illuminated much about myself that I never knew. The Thomas Jefferson autobiography means a great deal to me because it represents a new way to see the world. It opened my eyes and for that, I am forever indebted to Jefferson.