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I like the dreams of the future better than the history of the past.

Thomas Jefferson, letter to John Adams, 1816

Philosophy

The story behind the card

Jefferson wrote this line to John Adams on 1 August 1816, when both former presidents were old men; Adams had been the second president and Jefferson the third. They had been bitter rivals in the 1800 election and stopped speaking for years, until their friend Benjamin Rush reconciled them in 1812. Their later letters covered politics, religion, ageing and memory. In this one Jefferson looks forward rather than back. Ten years later both men died on the same day, 4 July 1826, fifty years after the Declaration of Independence.

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Thomas Jefferson, John Adams'a mektup, 1816

Jefferson bu satırı 1 Ağustos 1816'da John Adams'a yazdı; ikisi de artık yaşlanmış iki eski başkandı: Adams ABD'nin ikinci, Jefferson üçüncü başkanıydı. 1800 seçiminde amansız birer rakip olmuşlar, ardından yıllarca birbirleriyle konuşmamışlardı. Ortak dostları Benjamin Rush 1812'de onları barıştırdı ve siyasetten dine, yaşlılıktan anılara uzanan uzun bir mektuplaşma başladı. Jefferson bu mektupta geçmişe değil, ileriye bakar. İkisi de on yıl sonra, Bağımsızlık Bildirgesi'nin ellinci yıl dönümünde, 4 Temmuz 1826'da aynı gün öldü.

Sources and further reading

Background reading: Thomas Jefferson
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