Heroes for My Son Read Online Free PDF Page A

living.
    Â 
    It is a gift George Bush has never forgotten: “This is for Ted White and John Delaney. Here we go….” *
    God bless those boys.
    â€”George H. W. Bush

— COMEDIAN —
lucille ball
    Actor. Trailblazer.

    The star and creative force behind the early TV show I Love Lucy, Lucille Ball became the greatest comedian of her time and one of the most beloved entertainers ever—solely through her ability to find a laugh in what everyone else was taking so seriously.
    Â 
    Â 
    S he was sent to live with Grandmother Peterson.
    Grandmother Peterson believed happiness was a sin.
    Â 
    In her house, mirrors were banned—except the one in the bathroom—since they led to vanity.
    Â 
    Instead, Lucy would play in the chicken coop, pretending it was her castle, the chickens her loyal army.
    For friends? Lucy created one: “Sassafrassa.”
    Â 
    Only Sassafrassa gave Lucy compliments, telling Lucy she was far more beautiful than Grandmother knew.
    Lucy needed to hear it. If she was caught looking in a mirror, she was punished.
    Â 
    This was the girl who relished the chance to see her own reflection.
    Contorting her face and widening her eyes in trolley car windows, she loved to see the possibilities. The simple humor of it.
    Â 
    And as she proved to the world, that humor could take on anything. *
    Love yourself first and everything falls into line.
    â€”Lucille Ball
    Between 1952 and 1953, when TV studio executives thought no one would watch the wacky redhead and her Cuban husband, on a typical Monday night two out of three households with TV sets proved them wrong.

— MAN OF HIS WORD —
george washington
    General. Leader. First president.

    As the commander of the Continental Army, George Washington won the Revolutionary War. As president of the United States, he won the world’s admiration.
    Â 
    Â 
    H e’d won.
    Â 
    He’d led farmers and fishermen in a battle against the greatest fighting force in the world.
    Â 
    And he’d won.
    Â 
    At that moment—at the height of his popularity—George Washington could have easily declared himself king of America. The people would have followed. He could’ve held power for the rest of his life.
    Â 
    Back in England, the defeated King George III asked what Washington’s plans were.
    Â 
    â€œThey say he will return to his farm,” the American painter Benjamin West replied.
    Â 
    â€œIf he does that,” King George said, “he will be the greatest man in the world.”
    Â 
    And that’s what Washington did.
    Â 
    And he did it again when he left the presidency after his second term.
    Â 
    It was the greatest, most heroic act of his career: putting his faith, not just in his country, but in us. *
    Few men have virtue to withstand the highest bidder.
    â€”George Washington

— TRAMP —
charlie chaplin
    Director. Actor. Silent film star.

    The instantly recognizable “Little Tramp” of silent film, Charlie Chaplin turned the experiment called movies into a legitimate art form.
    Â 
    Â 
    W hen Charlie was seven years old, his mother suffered from hallucinations and migraine headaches so severe that she could no longer care for him and his brothers.
    Â 
    There was only one choice, the doctors decided: She was sent to a psychiatric hospital.
    Â 
    Eventually, they let her out.
    Â 
    When Charlie was fourteen, she went back to the asylum.
    Â 
    His mother had been knocking on front doors, handing out pieces of coal, and insisting they were birthday presents.
    Â 
    She complained of seeing the dead staring at her.
    Â 
    Desperate to stay out of the workhouse, Charlie slept in alleyways, ate from garbage cans, and stole food.
    Â 
    To this day, historians argue about whether or not Chaplin based his most famous character—his Little Tramp—on his own life.
    Â 
    It doesn’t matter.
    Â 
    Within months of the character’s debut,