The Prince

Once upon a time there was a prince. He was born in the beautiful countryside. His family home sat in the middle of the trees at their mountainside estate. The lush surroundings were populated with wildlife, which meant that there was never a shortage of food.

The Prince was the third of his father’s, Peter’s, ten children. The Prince wasn’t a prince in the technical sense. After all, his father wasn’t a king, nor were his father’s position or wealth handed down from his father, the Prince’s grandfather. No, his father had to work for what he had gained.

One could turn one’s head in any direction and they could see the wealth his father had acquired. Livestock, slaves, books, at a time when books were considered a luxury item, were everywhere. The six-room manor, which was built four years before the Prince’s birth, overlooked the beautiful Rivanna River. Someone once said of his father, “He gained his wealth through industry, quick wits, and a good marriage.”

Something must have caught someone’s attention with this surveyor, the Prince’s father, because Peter would hold posts like County Surveyor, Justice of the Peace, and sheriff. He was even second in command of the county militia. Soon Peter sat in the House of Burgesses.

The Prince’s father was also a firm believer in education. Maybe this was something lacking from Peter’s own youth. Peter wanted his son to get the best education ever. The Prince loved his father so much and soaked up the attention he received by catching on to things easily. The Prince became smarter and smarter. He would never tire of learning. It became a lifetime passion for him.

One day sad news was given to the Prince. He was nine-years-old at the time. His parents were going to send him off to school. He was going to have to leave his six sisters and one brother and the beloved estate that was the only home he had ever known. Sadness filled his soul and a part of him felt like he was being abandoned.

The Prince would complete his preparatory education at Tuckahoe, which sat on the James River. Then he was enrolled in a Latin school which was run by the Reverend William Douglas. Douglas was from Scotland. From there his education was promoted at a classical school run by an Anglican clergyman named James Maury. Maury had a vast library and the Prince’s love for books was even more enhanced.

Four years into the Prince’s education came the most devastating news. His beloved father, the father he idolized, had died. His father was only forty-nine years old. He now knew he would never be able to replace those missing childhood years, because his father was no longer there to help him enjoy them. He would always feel family security was missing from his life.

The Prince took a great deal of interest in many things. He seemed to excel in all of them. He learned farming. He would study countless scientific fields. He could write. Boy, could he write.

The Prince was also very modest. He did not like speaking in front of large groups. He would get a lot accomplished during his lifetime, but he seemed to enjoy being behind the scenes rather than in front of the camera.

The Prince witnessed the unfair treatment the people in his province, and neighboring provinces, were experiencing. The people asked the Prince to attend a gathering with leaders of the other provinces. They wanted to see if they could get together and come up with a plan to touch the evil King’s heart who ruled over them.

So, off the Prince went to a far off land. The group gathered. The group scratched their heads, but nothing seemed to be working. The King was none too happy to hear complaints from his subjects. After all, he had other provinces that he reigned over, too. He was also very involved in a war with his enemy, another king from another land.

Someone had to pay for the King’s lifestyle and the war efforts that raged his land. He turned toward the Prince’s province and the other provinces that had gathered together. Besides, the King helped protect these provinces from the evil savages that lurked outside their borders. Let’s also not forget, he was the King, and the King should get whatever he wants from his subjects.

The Prince didn’t really stand out in the crowd that had gathered. He hated to speak in front of groups. But many in the group started to recognize his many talents, especially his writing ability. They asked the Prince to be part of a group to draft a letter to the King.

The vague instructions given to the group gave them a lot of latitude on what to compose. Some of the group may have been shocked by the letter that he basically wrote. The letter to the King demanded that he respect them and their rights. It went even further. The letter went on to tell the King to leave them alone and get out of their lives. They were able to take care of themselves.

The letter was written in such poetic verse that one couldn’t help but be touched by its words. That is, everyone but the King. The letter came down pretty hard on the King.

Let’s just say that the King was very upset by the letter. “These ungrateful subjects must be taught a lesson,” was his edict. He would send his mighty soldiers to their land to forever taint their memory with their very own blood. No such uprising was going to happen on his watch.

With the letter written, the Prince believed his mission had been accomplished so he decided to head home. His letter had ignited a fire in the souls of all who read it across the different provinces. He thought he could now move on to the next phase of his life.

The Prince moved back to the mountainside estate he had inherited from his father. He was ready to settle back into his farming life. Of course he would practice a little law to provide a little additional income, but he wanted to spend most of his leisure studying and reading.

Meanwhile, people from his and all other the other provinces had taken his words to heart. They had decided they would rather take up arms than to live under the King’s rule any longer. A great war had covered the land.

Many wondered where the courageous writer, who had used his pen as a sword to unite them, was. Their blood was being spilled and there was no sign of their gallant knight. They were puzzled by his invisible presence.

The Prince hinted at a prospect of leading his province, but he was very insecure with his talents to excel at that responsibility. He tried to discourage any talk of him becoming the province’s leader. His people would hear none of that. They demanded that he take the reign of their land. Reluctantly, he agreed to serve, but he would only agree to serve for a very short time.

The Prince’s decision, to become the leader of the province, was one he would come to regret. While the King’s rage seem to be concentrated on the provinces to the Prince’s north, it wasn’t long before the King’s troops were sitting at the Prince’s door step.

Morale was low because the war had been raging for over four years. He wasn’t much of a cheerleader and that made his task even more difficult. Besides, he believed the laws of the province forbid him from taking any action without the lawmakers’ approval.

The Prince was getting many requests from the other provinces to send them troops because they were losing their battle with the King. With morale so low the Prince was having a very difficult time convincing many of his countrymen to take up arms and fight. He thought he needed to think of his own homeland first and to send his troops to far off lands might lead to his province being defenseless. Besides, that was something he didn’t have the authority to do. That was up to the lawmakers to decide.

About this time the Prince was wanting to leave his post as the leader of the province, but he was talked into staying a little bit longer. With war all around him, he was not looking forward to leading any longer, but he did it anyway.

Soon one of the King’s generals turned his attention to the Prince’s province. On the seas and over the land the King’s general encountered very little serious resistance. Things were looking very bleak indeed for the Prince and his province.

Next the general turned his attention to the town that housed the lawmakers and the Prince. Oh, what a prize it would be to the general if he could capture the author of the “dirty letter” that was sent to the King. Before you knew it, the general and his troops were sitting on the outskirts of the little town.

The Prince and the lawmakers quickly moved their location to a town closer to the Prince’s estate. They wouldn’t stay there too long. It was just where they would move until the King’s troops left the town they fled from.

As the King’s troops got closer to the new town the Prince retreated to his mountain estate to gather some papers and some possessions. He knew he didn’t have much time, so after he gathered his things, he darted deeper into the woods. The Prince also had a summer home that very few people, like the general and his troops, knew about. That’s where he would head.

The Prince had decided he had had enough. No amount of persuading was going to convince him to lead his province any longer. The lawmakers had no choice but to select a new leader. Shouts covered the land of charges against the Prince. “It was because of the Prince that we are in this mess,” was their rallying cry.

The Prince decided to become a lawmaker himself to defend himself against such insults. The new leader, who had replaced the Prince, was given much more power than the Prince was as the leader. In addition, the northern provinces finally decided to send his province more troops. The King’s enemy, the one the King was fighting in other battles, also decided to send troops to help the Prince’s province.

Soon the King’s armies were forced to surrender and the war was basically over. The lawmakers ruled that the Prince had done all he could have done with all he had with the powers that were vested in him. He was cleared of all of the charges.

After the verdict was announced, the Prince gave up his seat as a lawmaker and returned to his mountain estate. He was determined to never serve as a leader again. He wanted to spend the rest of his days in the mountains.

The Presidential similar story:

In the early days of our republic, there was quite a gap between the “haves” and the “have nots.” Peter Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson’s father, worked very hard at moving out of the “have not” category and into the “have” category. As a result, Peter’s ten children lived a somewhat privileged life.

Having an education in those days was a rare treat indeed. Peter wanted his children to have an education that was never granted to him. Thomas, as the oldest son, received the blessing of getting that education first. His father sent him off to school because he knew there were others who could give him a lot better education than he could. Besides, there were probably very few “schools” close to where they lived.

Thomas Jefferson thought the world of his father. Although the education was an extremely rare gift in those days, Thomas somewhat resented having to move away from his father, his family, and his beloved home. Like most little boys, he looked up to his dad and probably wanted to learn from his dad and to be near him.

Seeing his father’s love for education probably inspired Thomas to want to grow smarter and smarter. Thomas Jefferson would never tire of learning or reading. As a result, Jefferson was one of the smartest men to ever hold the office of President.

Thomas Jefferson was asked to go to Philadelphia as part of the Second Continental Congress. He was appointed to a committee that would draft a letter to King George, of England, that has become known as the Declaration of Independence. His talents for writing shown through and this document helped inspire the patriots to take up arms against almost impossible odds. This rough and ragged group of farmers and shop owners would try to topple the greatest nation in the world at the time in order to gain the right to rule themselves.

With his inspiring act complete, writing the Declaration of Independence, Jefferson decided to retire to his home in the mountains outside Charlottesville, Virginia. He did not fire a single shot in the war and many were left wondering where this champion of liberty was.

Jefferson was chosen to become the second Governor of Virginia. He understood the great task and efforts that task would demand. He did not believe he had the talent to handle this task especially since we were at war, for our independence, with the most powerful nation on earth at the time. Like most of the big moves in his life, it took some persuading to get Jefferson to accept the challenge.

Jefferson was a true believer in this relatively new concept called democracy. Many, at that time, felt that the “haves” were much smarter and better prepared than the “have nots” for challenges like this. Jefferson, as Governor, believe he was not a king with unlimited powers. He believed it was up to the lawmakers to decide important decisions that they did not grant the Governor to rule over.

When the issue came to raising troops to fight, Jefferson believed he was not granted the authority from the lawmakers, so he waited for them to act. Much like today, those lawmakers could not present a united front on the issue, so nothing happened.

Jefferson was elected to a second term despite his great desire to just go home. Jefferson knew he couldn’t leave now because that would probably just hand the British the colony of Virginia.

The inability to raise enough troops would make it possible for the British troops to basically be able to move just outside the Virginia capital. The lawmakers, and Jefferson fled to Charlottesville. The British continued to pursue the rebels. Capturing the author of the Declaration of Independence would be a great prize.

When the British arrived just outside Charlottesville, Jefferson quickly went to his home, Monticello, to gather some papers and some belongings. He then quickly retreated to his summer home, Poplar Forest, just outside of Lynchburg.

It was about this time that Jefferson’s second term as Governor came to a close. He had had enough and flatly refused to serve another term. This left the lawmakers no choice but to pick another Governor. They would also grant this new Governor, General Thomas Nelson, more powers to do things like raising troops.

The lawmakers were very unhappy with Jefferson’s performance. Surely as their leader he could have done a better job of defending the Commonwealth. They decided to bring charges against their former Governor. Jefferson saw that the only means he had to defend himself was to become a lawmaker, too.

Jefferson was elected and his whole sense of purpose was to defend himself against these ridiculous charges. Northern colonies and France, England’s enemy, sent troops to Virginia shortly after Jefferson left the governorship. This would lead to the British General Cornwallis’ surrender in Yorktown. Cornwallis’ surrender pretty much signaled the end of the Revolutionary War.

With the end of the war pretty much in sight, and Jefferson’s defense of himself, the lawmakers, instead of charging him with anything, passed a resolution praising Jefferson for his service. Satisfied with the results, Jefferson resigned his position as a lawmaker and headed back home to Monticello. He vowed to never again serve, or lead, in public office again. Twenty years later, Jefferson was President of the United States.

Moral lesson:

Sometimes I believe we waste the talents that the Lord has blessed us with. A lack of confidence, fear, doubt, selfishness, shyness, and a host of other reasons can hold us back. The effort and possible embarrassment that could cloud our existence doesn’t seem to be a storm we want to travel through. Yes, we are much safer standing off in a distance not making a scene.

As great a man as Thomas Jefferson was, can you just imagine a Thomas Jefferson who used all the talents God had given him? A confident Jefferson who didn’t let his insecurities rule his life might have gone down in history, not only as a very intelligent and talented individual, but as one of the greatest leaders also.

Prayer thoughts:

God sending us courageous leaders to lead our nation
God letting us fully use our talents not only to benefit ourselves, but to help others as well
God helping us to rid ourselves of self-doubt and fear