The Beautiful Kind

I visited the Abraham Lincoln Museum in Springfield, Illinois a couple weeks ago. I went with a friend of mine - he’s pictured below with the Lincoln clan. (To protect his privacy, I covered his face, and then thought it would be fun to cover everyone else’s face, too. Doesn’t he blend right in?!) Impressive exhibits included “The Civil War in Four Minutes.” One week per second. Watch that casualty number go up, up, up. Whoah.

Here’s the takeaway message from the museum: Lincoln’s life sucked. Much worse than yours, I might add. They did a great job of portraying his failed relationships, business ventures, all his enemies, the death of his children, the grimness of the Civil War, and his tragic end. Geez, no wonder he got treated like a martyr after his death.

And check this out. They pointed out that if you take the solemn pic of him below (a larger version can be viewed here) and cover up the left side of his face, you can then tell that he smiles on one side.