Sunny Friday: Can do like Ben Franklin
Friday, August 07, 2009
Happy Friday, friends!
Today I wanted to point you to a “Can Do,” a great piece on Ben Franklin from And the Pursuit of Happiness, Maira Kalman’s blog on the NY Times site. In it, she looks into the genius of Ben Franklin, which was as much about pointed self-improvement as it was invention.
This part made me particularly happy: “I don’t think he was ever bored. He saw a dirty street and created a sanitation department. He saw a house burning down and created a Fire Department. He saw sick people and founded a hospital.”
And this: “Everything is invented. Language. Childhood. Careers. Relationships. Religion. Philosophy. The Future. They are not there for the plucking. They don’t exist in some natural state. They must be invented by people. And that, of course, is a great thing. Don’t mope in your room. Go invent something. That is the American message.”
What will you invent today?
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See more articles by Megan Dietz.
Here’s to invention! When we believe we can invent, we find hope and excitement for the future. No more excuses. No more self-doubt. Try, try again. (I’m telling these things to myself :))
I love Ben Franklin!! Great reminder as I am inventing myself in and through a teaching career, rather than trying to fit into what already exists and feel deadened by it. Great point that Maira makes is that everything is invented, objects, ideas, institutions and the way we relate to life. Today I am continuing to reinvent a balanced schedule, with work time, and relaxation time.
Maira didn’t mention that Franklin also studied the Atlantic Ocean. He noticed that packet ships, delivering mail from the colonies to England arrived faster than those coming from England. He wondered why and consulted a associate who ran a merchant and whaling ship. He learned that the whales swim through the warm Gulf Stream current becuase they are following blooms of plankton that grow in warm, nutrient rich waters. Whalers followed these warm waters too, in hopes of a catch. Franklin influenced American packet ships to use the current, but couldn’t convince British packet ships to avoid it. Franklin conducted his own observations of the Atlantic during several trans-atlantic voyages, he passed on his data to his great grandson, who worked as a superintendent of the US coast survey, later known as the US coast guard.
more info: http://www.studyofplace.info/Modules/Module.cfm?ModuleId=2&ModuleItemId=7
What also strikes me about Franklin was how social of a person he was. He brought ideas together and collaborated with others who knew specific knowledge that he wanted to learn and incorporate in his inventions.
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