Random Rant//I'm Back?

I’m a Civil War geek, rock-bound Yankee, and Northern supporter from way back, and I’ll explain why:

First of all, despite what anyone may argue, the conflict was centered around the issue of slavery; should people be allowed to own another human being? Was it their right as an American?

 The South will tell you until their blue(or gray) in the face that it was about state rights, but just what right were they fighting for other than the right to choose whether or not they could have slaves?

 Many will argue that had they been allowed to decide it for themselves, eventually they would have abolished the horrific act. But how do they know that?

 If the South intended to eventually free their slaves, then why the sudden panic to secession when a known Anti-Slavery President was elected? (Huge Lincoln nerd, by the way)

 Now I believe in state rights. Each state should be allowed to have their say on certain matters, and vote on laws that they believe need to be addressed.

 But no country or state, on God’s planet, has the right to decide whether they want to keep another human in bondage; that innocent man has a right to his freedom, a right given to him by God Himself, not some state law.

 That is what the Abolitionists of the time were trying to say. It wasn’t the government’s say that made all men free and equal. It was God Almighty’s.

 And these states had no right to demand the “right” to decide.

It’s the same reason I am Pro-Life. No woman has the right to decide whether she can take the life of an unborn child. Because that child has God-given rights, endowed by it’s Creator. And no state, law, or king can say that it is legal and “up to the mother” to take away it’s right to life.

“We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal: that they are endowed by their Creator with certain, unalienable rights: that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” The Declaration of Independence, 1776

This does NOT state that all men are free to do whatever they desire, but that they are given the right to life and freedom from fear; no age, sex,(men refers to all mankind) or color was mentioned. And may I also point out that the word 'born' is not used here. 
 Instead they state simply, 'Created'. 

I guess I needed to get a couple things off my chest? lol 
 Here I've been absent for quite a while, and then I come in, swinging both fists. 

I would really like to take up blogging again, but I seem to lost all my followers interest. 

 So.... you all tell me! What were your favorite posts from the past year? What kind of posts would you like see more of? 

I guess I haven't felt the need to write as often because all of my 'writer energy' has been going into my novel (I have finally decided on a name!) Strength in Measure. (taken from the hymn, Day by Day) 

Which as been come along pretty well, actually! 

I love immersing myself in the little world I've created, and seeing where the road takes them (and me!) I've actually met a few characters along the way that I never planned on. 

 It's like my novel has a mind of it's own? 

Anyways, ya'll, I'm back, but whether I'm back to stay is up to you! 

 And if you show enough interest in wanting my jabbering 'fingers' (since technically I'm not talking with my mouth) back, then we'll once again be rockin', rollin' and writin' together! 

Don't let me down! What would you like to see more of?

Why I Love America // Independence Day

Yesterday was the glorious 4th! *fireworks explode*
 Independence Day has always been one of my favorite holidays, since I was a little girl.
Fireworks, sparklers, barbecues, and flags flying in the wind.
 Why do I celebrate the 4th?
Is it because I am an American, thinking my country is superior to yours?
 My patriotism run much deeper than anything like that.
I'm not the gung-ho, shoot-your-head-off-if-you-run-us-down type, nor do I think that because I am an American, I am better than any other nationality on this earth.
 I love my country.
On Independence Day, it's more than a celebration of our nation's birthday.
 More than a celebration of America's past, present and future.
It's the celebration of an idea.
 An idea that God placed in the hearts of our Founding Fathers so many years ago.
An idea that all men are created equal and free, by one God, and that any man, of race, color or social stature, can walk with his head high, look any man in the eye, and say, think and believe anything he desires.
 An idea that burned in millions of hearts throughout the years, across the nation and across the world.
 And that idea, that kindling flame, still burns in the hearts of millions today.
Freedom, justice, and peace, can be possible for any man.
 That idea isn't for only Americans.
It's for the British, the Russian, the Chinese, the Canadian, the Australian; any man or woman 'who holds these truth to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.'
 No I don't believe that being American is only way to go, that we are the better people on earth, or that because of our nationality, we are getting a higher place in heaven.
 I know sometimes there are those who can get carried away, and may across in that way.
It's because it's so hard to explain, to bank this flame that grows inside.
 I can't truly tell you why I feel the way I do.
I can't recall a time where anyone told me I had to be a Patriot, or to love my country, or why.
 It's just...a feeling, a conviction, a deep, deep love that God seems to have placed there, and nothing anyone says or does can change it.
 Here in the United States of America, we have our problems.
No nation is perfect.
  I will be the first to agree that things seem to be getting pretty bad these days, and many times I have been driven to my knees with a heavy heart, asking God to forgive our nations many sins, and to open the eyes of the people and the leaders to Him.
 Yes, these have been dark days for Miss Liberty.
But that flame is still there.
 She still holds it high, for all the world to see, reminding us that as long as we feed that flame, that idea, it will never go out.
 If we look up, into the Divine Light of our Savior, He will continue to bless this nation and forgive us our many trespasses.

O beautiful for pilgrim feet,
Whose stern impassion’d stress
A thoroughfare for freedom beat
Across the wilderness!
America! America! God mend thine ev’ry flaw,
Confirm thy soul in self-control,
Thy liberty in law!

O beautiful for heroes proved In liberating strife,
Who more than self their country loved,
And mercy more than life!
America! America! May God thy gold refine
Till all success be nobleness,
And ev’ry gain divine!

God bless the many men and women who have given their lives for this nation, for this idea, this flame that He lit. 
 God grant our leaders humility, wisdom, and grace. 
And may God continue to bless the U.S.A. 
  
                                                       LaKaysha

Fashion of American Women 1900-2000 Part II

1940's-1970's
 Now we come to my favorite decade! *wide smile*
If I had my way, this how I would dress everyday. :)

In the late 1930's and the beginning of the year 1940, things seemed rather bright for the people of America.
 The Depression was slowly fading, although still quite evident in some places, and everything seemed to be changing for the good.
 Women were growing their hair out longer, although still permed, and becoming quite elaborate with their hairstyle, pompadours, and waves becoming the 'in' thing.
 Movie star Veronica Lake inspired thousands with her classic 'peekaboo' waves.
 The word was 'sophiticated', and believe me, the women knew how to do it.
Suits became popular, which consisted of a smart-fitted jacket and matching skirt, worn with nylons, (fashionably striped in the back) pumps, HATS!, (ranging in size), handbag, gloves, furs... accessories were a girl's best friend!
 Then came December 7th, 1941.
With the United States now in war, and the men rushing off to the service, the factories and plants needed the women's help.
 So the women donned their slacks, rolled up their sleeves, tied up their hair in turbans, and went to work.
 With the sudden change, fashion changed as well.
Dresses were given a more military cut, and became simpler.
Shorter hair became popular, due to the danger of hair being caught in equipment, but even during all of this, the women were encouraged to look as feminine and lovely as possible, even on the job.
 It was important to look good for the boys overseas, to keep the morale high.
They did a wonderful job of looking lovely, too.
Victory Rolls were introduced, which spurred a number of similar styles for the hair.
 Flowers were a favorite accessory.

1940

Veronica Lake, 'peekaboo' hair

1940-41

1940

1942

1940's

Isn't she lovely? Don't you wish we still looked like this?

Even when casual, women tried to look fashionable

They had such creativity with their hair *sigh*

1940's

1940's

Veronica Lake, again ;)

1940's

Factory workers

As the war ended, and the men were coming home again, the good girls went back home to their families. (Some women like their independence)

 Christian Dior introduced the New Look, which was a tiny waist, and very full skirt...

Enter the swinging, happy, peaceful 1950's! *smiles*

 Where there was once a shortage of industry, America now progressed.

The men came back and married their sweethearts, resulting in the Baby Boom.

 Fabric was now plentiful, so what did the women do?

Why, took advantage of it, of course.

 Some dresses took yards, and yards, and yards of material to create just the right amount of flow, and crinolines added to the full look.

 If they weren't wearing a full poodle skirt, then there were the pencil skirts, with a jacket to match, similar to the suits of the 1940's.

 Hair was never out of place, and it was the age of feminine attire and dainty women.

1950's

1950's

1950's. Am I wrong, or does this look like Grace Kelly?

Even casual looked dainty on a fifties woman

formal 1950's

1950's

1950's

Casual cotton dresses. I actually own one myself, which I purchased from an antique store :D

As the 1950's evolved into the 1960's, fashion was slowly becoming more casual, and sadly, less feminine.

 It was now the age of the mini skirt, thick heavy eye makeup, bright colors and ever so slowly, the age of the Hippy.

 Hair was big, either in large beehives or simply ratted and the ends curled, either under or out, depending on the wearer.

 I really can't say much about the 1960's...it was well, the 60's.

Space was the 'in' style, as well as Oriental and Boho.

 Audrey Hepburn was a fashion icon, and I believe, the only decent one in the whole decade. ;)

Her 'girl-next-door' look was more natural and conservative, and she didn't wear the heavy makeup look that most actresses were adopting.  

early 1960's

This shows how fashion changed from the feminine fifties to the hip late 1960's.

1960's

more feminine fashion 1960's

Twiggy. This is the look that every girl wanted to copy

Interesting, isn't it? In the 1960's, every piece of clothing seemed to match

Audrey Hepburn, a more classy and sophisticated actress

The Beehive hairstyle

!970's.

 Well, now this was really a time of hippies, bell bottoms, tie-dye, and flower power.

Girls were growing their hair long, with flips, waves and layers, makeup was as natural as possible,

 Pants were now very normal in a female's closet, (bell-bottom, of course), and it was a very relaxed age.

Dresses were very short, so I won't be posting very many pics of those... ;)

In fact, a lot of the 1970's was immodest, so I won't have near as many photos.

 Hot pants were in, which were what we call now, 'bun shorts'.

Fringes, crop tops, beads, sandals...It was another terrible time in America.

 The young people were protesting the Vietnam War, smoking drugs, and all in all, it was just plain sinful...

  



1970's

Farrah Fawcett, of 'Charlie's Angels', was a style icon

1970's

I'd guess early 1970's

1970's

Granny dress. If you weren't wearing a mini, this was 'groovy'.

Yeah, I'm speechless.... Who would wear that?

Thank goodness these styles didn't last forever. ;)

 Eventually the Hippy Age passed, as does all fads, and America became peaceful for just a small while....

 Stay tuned for Part III: 1980's-2000's!

LaKaysha



Freedom

For a lot of people in this great nation of ours, freedom is just a word.
 Just a word politicians debate about, a word people use in speeches on days like Veterans Day and the 4th of the July.
 We hear it often enough.
But do we really know what it means?
There are people all over the world that would give up their own lives for one, solitary, second of freedom.
If their last breath on earth was to be the moment they would be given the freedom we all enjoy so much, they would die, and they would die gladly.
 Freedom is a sweet, sweet, thing that so many across the globe wish to simply have a small taste of its goodness, while those who have a steady diet forget how precious liberty is.
They have the nerve to complain, to whine that they aren't getting their fair share, when they should be getting down on their knees and thanking God for His Blessings, for placing them in a country where they can still go to church, sing, laugh and joke without fear or intimidation.
 You can hop on over to get your third coffee on whim.
You can talk about politics, government, without danger.
You lie down in bed at night, knowing that your family is safe and secure.
 You can worship God in any way you see fit, because in this country we have freedom!
And that freedom wasn't handed to us on a silver platter, either.
 It was fought for, bled for, defended and paid for by every man and woman who loved freedom more than their own lives.
They were thinking of you as they stumbled across Valley Forge.
They were thinking of you as they were being shot down in a bloody field at Gettysburg.
 They were thinking of you as they waded into that cold, tumbling waves at the beaches of Normandy.
They were thinking of you as they worked in a make-shift bamboo hospital in the middle of a place called Baatan.
 They were thinking of you as they crept through mine-infested rice fields in a strange country called Vietnam.
 They are thinking of you as they sneak through the darkness toward a enemy with only a knife as their weapon.
 Freedom is for you if only would learn to appreciate it.
Its time you got down on your knees to thank God for this blessed word.
 Freedom.
                                                                   God Bless America                                   
                                                                        LaKaysha

Just Some Thoughts

I'd like to share some of my thoughts in the Civil War.
I know that this can be a touchy subject, but I'd like to share some personal feelings.
Many people have heard me argue about this troublesome time in our nation, and I'm sorry if I ever got a bit too passionate.
God has convicted me in some of these things, and sometimes I get carried away. I really don't know why I have such an interest in the Civil War, but it is something I truly enjoy learning about.
It was a truly sad time in our nation, and I'm not prejudice about the South, nor do I mention it to start a hot argument.
Some people do think it's simply fun to get into a nice, fiery debate over which side was correct, but that isn't ever my intention.
It's something much too sorrowful for me to do that.
There is something so deep, so sad, in the way that brother had to rise against brother, father against son, to take up arms and kill people they love.
When people mention the Civil War, I don't see glory and honor, although there was a lot of that ,too. I see sorrow, like I see every time I look into President Lincoln's eyes. I see pain, like I see when I read first-hand accounts of the war. I see grief, like I see each time I see a mother who has lost a child.
Many didn't come home from those bloody battlefields, many lost an arm, an leg, their eyesight, their hearing. Many were permanently disabled from serving their nation.
And there is more than just their physical injuries. Have you ever killed another human being?
You can't even imagine the pain and regret those poor men had to face each time they thought back to those horrible moments.
War is a terrible thing that no one should have to endure, and when we look back on the Civil War, it should be with compassion, not hate.
Thankfulness that you never had to take up arms against your own.
Forgiveness for your enemy, and pride for all those poor men.
Just some of my thoughts on this December afternoon...
Merry Christmas!
                                                                            LaKaysha    

A Man of the People... a long post!

This is a report I did for school, and since his birthday was last week and today is President's Day, I thought I would share :) 

There has been one man that had stood above the crowd for decades. People looked up to and respected him; a deep feeling of love surrounded them as they gazed up at his picture. However, through the years, some historians have pushed him down, his good name slandered and blackened. Some cannot even speak his good name without sneering. This man’s name is Abraham Lincoln.

I always felt a deep respect for the man, maybe because I was born on his birthday, or maybe his deep, wise looking eyes drew my attention. Whatever the reason, I have had a love for him as long as I can remember. People tell me he was an unjust man, very against religion, and a politically incorrect President. I never believed this and decided to find out about the real Abe Lincoln, how he really thought, and if these things were true. I have tried to get as close to him as I could, by reading eyewittness accounts by people who knew him, his letters, and his speeches. Moreover, in my observations, I have found only an honorable man, deep in his faith and love for his country. But I can’t give you my word. Its best you read and see for yourself. So now, let me start at the beginning, when a legend was born.

Abraham Lincoln was born in a one-room log cabin on February 12, 1809, in the small town of Hodgerville, Kentucky to Thomas Lincoln and Nancy Hanks Lincoln. Thomas and Nancy had two other children along with Abraham. Sarah, the oldest and baby Thomas Jr. who died in infancy.

His father, had no education, but could write his name, only “bunglingly”, according to the President. His mother could not write at all, not read a simple letter. Abe was named after his grandfather, the first Captain Lincoln, who was killed by an Indian while working his field. The story goes to say that Thomas, Abe’s father, witnessed the murder, and would have been a victim as well, if his brother Mordecai had not shot the attacker.
Abe often said, in later years, that his life had been very poor. His clothes were often rags, the small cabin cramped. Due to a land dispute, his father moved to Indiana. Where Abe’s mother, Nancy, died of milk sickness. This is a disease obtained from drinking the milk of cows that had grazed on poisonous snakeroot. Abe was only nine years old.
Abe’s stepmother
Thomas Lincoln then re-married Sarah Bush Johnston, a widow with three children, said to be his childhood sweetheart. She was a woman with a rosy face, curly hair, and a sweet disposition.
When Sarah Bush Johnston came to the Lincoln home, it was as sorry sight, and the children were very ragged. She took one look at Abe and folded him in her arms. “Howdy, Abe Lincoln.”
The sweet woman made Abe and his sister Sarah new clothes that fit, and cleaned up the shambled house. She had a deep love for Abe, and knew he was somebody special who didn’t belong to her, but was hers to keep for a while.
Abe had gone to school for very little of time, but he loved to read. Thomas thought it was all foolishness, but Sarah encouraged the young boy, much to the father’s displeasure. Abe was never really very close to his father after that.
He loved to write, too, and was always jotting something down. He’d often read them aloud to Sarah, ending with, “Did I make it plain?” She would always answer him the best she could.
They told each other things they would never tell anyone else. Abe had dreams he seemed to think were hopeless, but Sarah always encouraged him.
In 1830, Thomas moved the family to Illinois, where he and Abe built a two-room cabin together.
The place was barely built when Abe decided it was time to move on his own.
At first he would come home often, but after he became a lawyer, it was only twice a year. Every time Sarah saw him, his mind seemed bigger, growing with more and more wisdom. He would tell her all about his political battles, and his marriage to Mary Todd.
Sarah wasn’t the crying kind, but she cried when he was elected President.
Then, many years later, they came and told her he was dead. The newspapers wrote a long article about his real mother, but Sarah was not mentioned.
When asked what sort of boy he was, it was hard for the sad woman to answer.
“Abe was a good boy. He never gave me a crossword or look. He loved me truly, I think.”
In addition, when Abraham Lincoln said, “All that I am I owe to my angel mother,” he was meaning a sweet gentle woman with soft eyes and heart full of love and devotion. He was speaking of Sarah, his beloved stepmother.

Life on his own
In the spring of 1831, Lincoln left his parents to try to find his own way. He was hired on a flatboat bound for New Orleans. After this successful journey, he then settled in the small village of New Salem, where he set up a store. This did not last long. When a group of men in the militia left for the Black Hawk War, he enlisted and was elected Captain. He also became a surveyor. A general under Andrew Jackson offered Abe a job of surveying some country at the pay of $600. Abe refused. His friend asked him why, astonished.
“I need the money bad enough, Simmons, as you know; But I never have been under obligation to Democratic administration, and I never intend to be so long as I can get my living another way.”
It was in 1832, when he first ran for a seat in the state legislature. He lost.
However, he won in the next election and also created the Republican Party.
Ann Rutledge
In 1833, he met Ann Rutledge, a young blue-eyed woman with a sweet smile. He fell in love with this young woman and after being in State legislative, they were engaged. Abe would ride from New Salem to the Rutledge farm, where he and Ann would spend hours talking and planning. However, the happiness of the two was threatened when Ann became sick, believed to may be typhoid. She died at her home, leaving Abe full of sorrow and grief. He was struck with sadness, and would tell friends of her grave, “I can’t bear to think of her out there alone.”
Historians debate wether or not Lincoln really did love Ann or if they were only friends. However, old acquaintances insisted the story was true. It is said that many years later, after Lincoln's first election as President, Isaac Cogdal, Lincoln's old friend, ventured to ask whether it was true that Lincoln had fallen in love with Ann. 
“It is true- true indeed I did," Lincoln replied. "I loved the woman dearly and soundly: she was a handsome girl- would have made a good loving wife...I did honestly and truly love the girl and think often-often of her now.”

Mary Todd Lincoln
Abe met Mary Todd at a dance in her sister’s home. It is said they had an on-again off-again courtship. They married on November 4, 1842. Although Mary had temper, Abe loved her deeply, and was known to have said,
“My wife is as handsome as when she was a girl, and I, a poor nobody then, fell in love with her; and what is more, I have never fallen out.”
The couple had Robert Lincoln in 1843, and then Edward, “Eddie” in 1846. Sadly, in December 1849, little Eddie became sick with what was thought to be dipthieria, but many belive to be tuberculosous. Mary desprately did all she could, but the child died on February, 1, 1850. He was not even four years old.
The couple was thrown into deep grief, and was forever scarred by the memory of the little child lying cold and still in bed.
Ten months later, William, “Willie” was born.
Thomas “Tad” was born on April 4, 1853.
Abraham Lincoln gave him his nickname because of his constant “wiggling” as an infant, likening to a tadpole.

　
President of the United States
When Abe ran for office, many people couldn’t believe this homely, rather awkward man could ever think of being elected. He was nicknamed ‘The Rail-Splitter’ because of his work as a young man splitting rails for fences. Much to the surprise of everyone, Abraham Lincoln showed he had a remarkable way with people. He soon won the affection of the American people with his slow smile, quick wit, and his remarkable wisdom.
On March 4, 1861, Abraham Lincoln was sworn into office and became the 16^th President of the United States. After the election, the Southern States saw this Republican (who was known throughout the nation as antislavery) as a threat to their way of life.
Prior to what many people say, the South wanted the right to keep slaves, as this was the main source of their economy. They felt it was injust for any man to tell them that what they were doing was moraly wrong.
And so, when Abraham Lincoln was sworn into office, South Carolina succeded from the Union.
Soon, others States followed. And then on April 12, 1861, Rebal soldiers fired upon Fort Sumter, South Carolina.
The Civil War had begun.
Abe ‘The Rail-Splitter’ now had a war on his hands. Lincoln felt a deep sorrow at the thought of fighting other Americans, who were only doing what they thought, was right. But he knew he had to put a stop to the rebellion if the Union would forever be.
F.B Carpenter wrote,
“During the first week of the battles of the Wilderness he scarcely slept at all. Passing through the main hall of the domestic apartment on one of these days, I met him, clad in a long morning wrapper, pacing back and forth a narrow passage leading to one of the windows, his hands behind him, great black rings under his eyes, his head bent forward upon his breast,---altogether such a picture of the effects of sorrow, care, and anxiety as would have melted the hearts of the worst of his adversaries, who so mistakenly applied to him the epithets of tyrant and usurper. With sorrow almost divine, he, too, could have said of the rebellious States,
‘How often I would have gathered you together, even as a hen gathered her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!’
Like another Jeremiah, he wept over the desolations of the nation; “He mourned the slain daughter of his people.”

Lincoln showed his love for even the enemy when the Washington “Chronicle” published a section on the death of Stonewall Jackson, speaking kindly of his bravery. Lincoln wrote a letter thanking the writer for speaking kindly of a fallen foe. These were his words:
“I honor you for your generosity to one who, though contending against in a guilty cause, was nevertheless a gallant man. Let us forget his sins over his fresh-made grave.”
The war lasted four bloody years, and President Lincoln felt the burden of it all. Many people came, begging for the lives of their loved ones, and many times, tears would form in his eyes as he promised he would do his best.
Referring to Mr. Lincoln’s disposition to pardon or commute the majority of the death sentences Judge Holt remarked,
“The President is without exception the most tender-hearted man I ever knew.”
A mother went to the President and begged for his help to release her son. Lincoln allowed her, but sadly, the son died. The woman once again made her way to the White House, where Lincoln recognized her and listened to her story and said, “I know what you wish me to do now, and I shall do it without your asking; I shall release your second son.”
While he was writing out his the order, the poor woman stood by his side and passed her hand over his hair, just as a mother would a son, tears running down her cheeks. By the time he finished, Lincoln’s eyes were full as well. She took the paper and laid her hand again on his head, saying, her voice chocked with emotion, “The Lord Bless you, Mr. Lincoln. May you live a thousand years, and may you always be the head of this great nation!”  
One woman visited the President, begging for the pardon of her young son. Lincoln promptly granted her wish, and she was escorted out of the White House. Suddenly she blurted, “I knew it was a copperhead lie!”
When asked what she meant she answered, “Why, they told me he was an ugly looking man. He is the handsomest man I ever saw in my life!”
The blacks loved Abraham Lincoln deeply, some referring to him as Moses. Whenever he passed by, they would all sing and shout, crying, “God bress Massa Lincoln!”
The President was always deeply touched by the affection of these people and once told Colonel McKaye, his voice deep with emotion, “It is a momentous thing to be the instrument, under Providence, of the liberation of a race.”
Once a memorial was presented to the President by children of Concord, Mass., petitioning for the freedom of all slave children. In reply:
“Tell those little people I am very glad their young hearts are so full of just and generous sympathy, and that while I have not the power to grant all they ask, I trust they will remember that God has; and that as it seems He wills to do it.
A. Lincoln.”
When it finally came time for the Emancipation Proclamation, the President said,
“I promised my God I would do it!”
Secretary Chase was the only one who heard him mutter this and asked if he understood him correctly. Lincoln replied,
‘I made a solemn vow before God, that if General Lee was driven back from Pennsylvania, I would crown the result by the declaration of freedom to the slaves.’
When Lincoln signed the Emancipation, he lifted the pen, and then set it back down. He repeated this once more then turned to Secretary Seward and said,
“I have been shaking hands since nine o’clock this morning, and my right arm is almost paralyzed. If my name ever goes into history it will be for this act, and my whole soul is in it. If my hand trembles when I sign the Proclamation, all who examine the document hereafter, will say, “He hesitated.”’
He then turned back to the table, took up the pen again, and slowly, firmly wrote, ‘Abraham Lincoln’.
Then he looked up, smiled and said, “That will do.”  
In September, The Emancipation Proclamation was written and the colored Americans were proclaimed forever free.
One freed slave woman visited the White House and told the President, “I believe God has hewn you out of a rock, for this great and mighty purpose. Many have been led away by bribes of gold, of silver, of presents; but you have stood firm, because God was with you, and if you are faithful to the end, He will be with you.”
Lincoln’s eyes filled with tears and thanked her kindly, but said, “You must not give me the praise---it belongs to God.”
While granting pardons, dealing with his generals and the war; deep inside the White House, Abraham Lincoln was dealing with a deep bitter hurt.
On February 20, 1862, young Willie Lincoln, only twelve years old, died of what is believed to be typhoid fever. Tad cried for days, as he and Willie were very close, causing mischief everywhere they went. Mary was so distraught Abe feared for her sanity, and he himself was in a deep depression.

This is one of the most moving stories I have ever read about the President. It is a passage from F.B. Carpenter’s book, “The Inner Life of Abraham Lincoln. Six Months in the White House.”
Most of my facts I gathered are from this book, written by a young painter who personally knew President Lincoln, as he stayed in the White House for six months painting a portrait of the President and his Cabinet (shown at the top).

After Willie’s death, the President stayed at home and would not see anyone. Then Rev. Francis Vinton came to call. He told the mourning father that these feelings, although natural, were sinful.
*“Your son,” said Dr. Vinton “is alive, in Paradise. Do you remember that passage in the Gospels?
'God is not the God of the dead but of the living, for all live unto him’?
The President had listened as one in a stupor, until his ear caught the words, ‘Your son is alive.”
Starting from the sofa, he exclaimed, “Alive! Alive! Surely you mock me.”
“No, sir, believe me,” Replied Dr. Vinton; “it is the most comforting doctrine of the church, founded upon the words of Christ himself.”
Mr. Lincoln looked at him a moment and the, stepping forward, he threw his arms around the clergyman’s neck, and, laying his head upon his breast, sobbed aloud.
“Alive? Alive?” He repeated.
“My dear sir,” said Dr. Vinton, greatly moved, as he twined his own arm around the weeping father.
“Believe this, for it is God’s most precious truth. Seek not your son among the dead; He is not there; He lives today in Paradise!
Think of the full import of the words I have quoted. The Sadducees, when they questioned Jesus, had no other conception than that Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were dead and buried. Mark the reply: ’Now that the dead are raised, even Moses showed at the bush when he called the Lord God of Abraham , the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. For he is not the God of the dead but of the living, for all live unto him!’
Did not the aged patriarch mourn his son’s dead?
‘Joseph is not, and Simeon is not, and ye will take Benjamin also.’
But Joseph and Simeon were both living, though he believed it not. Indeed, Joseph being taken from him was the eventual means of the preservation of the whole family. And so God has called your son into His upper Kingdom--a kingdom and existence as real, more real, than your own. It may be that he too, like Joseph, has gone in God’s good providence, to be the salvation of his father’s household. It is part of the Lord’s plan for the ultimate happiness of you and yours. Doubt it not…”*
The President was deeply moved and comforted, and the Rev. gave him a sermon, which he read, and re-read before having his own copy made for his own private use before it was returned. One family member said that Mr. Lincoln’s views in relation towards spiritual things seemed to change from that moment. In addition, it was then that he stopped thinking of that day his boy died and gradually began to get back to his usual self.
Struggling with depression, but now able to overcome it, the President threw himself into his duties to the American people.
He had a deep love for children, and when the young generation would visit him, he would not hesitate to pull them in his lap in a loving embrace. The children in return, loved him enormously, as did their parents.
Lincoln also had a knack for storytelling, which had helped him win the people’s love.
Countless times, while in the middle of a meeting, he would say, “That reminds me of a story…”
Then he would proceed to tell his Cabinet a story that would have them either laughing or their eyes filling with shame as they realized the moral of the wise tale.
Although he did have that sadness that seemed to hang over him, Abraham Lincoln truly did love to laugh.
When someone said that they hope “the Lord was on their side,” Lincoln replied,
“I am not at all concerned about that, for I know that the lord is always on the side of the right. But it is my constant anxiety and prayer that I and this nation should be on the Lord’s side.” 
A reporter once interviewed the President and noticed how haggard he looked. The reporter remarked, “You are wearing yourself out with work.”
“I can’t work less,” Lincoln replied. “But it isn’t that, ---work never troubled me. Things look badly and I can’t avoid anxiety. Personally, I care nothing about a reelection; but if our divisions defeat us, I fear for the country.”
The man replied that right must eventually triumph, and that he never despaired of the result.
The worn President answered, “Neither have I, but I may never live to see it. I feel a presentiment that I shall not outlast the Rebellion. When it is over, my work will be done.”
The Monday before his assassination, Lincoln stopped at City Point. Calling upon the head surgeon, he told him he’d like to shake the hands of all the wounded soldiers in the hospital. The surgeon insisted that there were too many, but Lincoln wanted to show them that he appreciated what they sacrificed for their country. And so he went along, shaking each hand and giving small words of sympathy and kind inquiries. As they passed along, they came to a ward where a rebel soldier lay. When the soldier recognized the tall figure, he sat up on one elbow, and exclaimed with tears running down his cheeks, “Mr. Lincoln, I have long wanted to see you, to ask your forgiveness for ever raising my hand against the old flag.”  
Moved to tears, the President shook his hand heartily.
After some hours, Lincoln returned to the office with the surgeon. They had scarcely entered when a messenger entered saying that one ward had been omitted and ‘the boys’ wanted to see Mr. Lincoln. The surgeon knew the President was tired, as he was weary himself, and tried to coax the President to stay. But Lincoln refused, knowing how disappointed ‘the boys’ would be. The surgeon expressed his fear that the President’s arm would be hurt from so much handshaking but Lincoln smiled, saying something about ‘strong muscles’. He then stepped outside, picked up an axe that was lying next to a block of wood, and chopped a moment. Then he extended his right arm to its full length, holding the axe horizontally, without it even quivering. No man there could hold it in this position for so long.
And then just a few days later, while enjoying a play, Abraham Lincoln was shot at Ford’s theater. The President had been much happier, as the war was over, and the Nation was back together again. But his happy days were cut short when John Wilkes Booth snuck into Lincoln’s box, shooting the beloved President in the back of the head. Mary screamed in panic, while Booth leaped to the stage. In a matter of hours, Abraham Lincoln was dead.
The nation was nearly in hysterics. People filled the streets across the country, crying, “Lincoln is dead!”
Secretary Seward had been attacked as well, and had been recovering in bed. The Sunday following, he had his bed wheeled around so he could see the top of the trees, which were showing their spring foliage. His eyes caught of the Stars and Stripes at half-mast on the War Department. He gazed at a while, and then turned to his attendant.
“The President is dead!”
The confused attendant denied it, but the Secretary knew it was a lie.
“If he had been alive, he would have been the first to call on me, but he has not been here, nor has he sent to know how I am; and there is the flag at half-mast.”
Seward knew the attendant’s silence confirmed his fears and great tears rolled down his cheeks, as it sank into his heart.
“Tad” was in frantic grief after being told of his father’s death, inconsolable for twenty-four hours.
He asked a gentleman caller, “Do you think my father has gone to heaven?”
“I have not a doubt of it,” was the choked reply.
Tad exclaimed, in his broken way, “Then, I am glad he has gone there, for he was never happy after he came here. This was not a good place for him.”
A man once told of how he saw the streets filled with people mourning as the President’s hearse rolled by. He watched as an old Negro woman ran across the streets to stand beside him, her head bowed as giant tears rolled her face. She was that way for a moment, then her head lifted, and she cried, her eyes still full of tears, “They needn’t crow yet! God ain’t dead!”
A great man, with a deep faith, Abraham Lincoln will always live in everyone who still believe in his cause, and love him as I have come to. I pray there will always be a spot in everyone’s hearts for this man, a man sent to us from God above. Abraham Lincoln, a man of the People.

LaKaysha

Sources:
The Inner Life of Abraham Lincoln: Six Months in the White House
by: F.B Carpenter
published: 1866

Abraham Lincoln, the Writer: a Treasury of his Greatest Speeches and Letters
by: Harold Holzer
published: 2000

Wallbuilders.com
David Barton

Original manuscripts (Library of Congress) ~ online~ collected works of Abraham Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln: Civil War Stories
Heartwarming Stories About Our Most Beloved President
by: Joe Wheeler
published: 2013