In a tradition that was begun several administrations ago, former President Bush left a private note for President Obama in the Oval Office. As I understand it, President Reagan started the tradition when he left office.
The note is always hand written by the outgoing President and placed in an envelope, sealed and addressed to the new President by number. The envelope from President Reagan to President Bush merely read From: 40 To: 41., In turn, Bush to Clinton read From 41 to 42. So after all the pomp and circumstances of the inauguration were over, either last night or early this morning, President Obama went to his new office and read the secret message that President Bush left him.
The contents of the notes have not been revealed by any of the former Presidents, and I don’t expect that we’ll ever know. It is a personal note from one to the other.
I do have a couple ideas though. I think they are passing on the fact that:
- We really did capture a space alien at Roswell back in the 40′s
- We didn’t really land on the moon back in the 60′s, it was all a fake
- Cuban cigars can be brought back from base at Guantanamo by your generals
Seriously though, hearing about the note yesterday I was reminded of a story I heard many years ago.
As the outgoing president was leaving office, he told the incoming president that there were three envelopes in the lower drawer of the desk in the Oval Office. “The envelopes are for your eyes only. When you get into trouble, remember those envelopes.”
About six months later, the new president got into trouble with Congress. He remembered the envelopes, and opened the first one. The note read: “Blame it on the previous administration.” He did, and the problems went away.
About a year later the new president faced a major crisis. Once more he remembered the envelopes. He opened the second one. Inside was a note that read: “Blame it on the previous president.” He denounced his predecessor and blamed the current crisis on the previous president. Once again, his problems went away.
Then when we was running for his second term, the president once again found himself in trouble and wondered if he might lose the election. He remembered the envelopes. Upon opening the third envelope, he found a note that read: “Prepare three envelopes.”
While a cute story, it should act as a reminder to us all. When, not if but when, we run into problems, we have to take responsibility for our actions. Don’t look for someone else to blame it on, look for a solution to the problem. And always be planning ahead. Whether it’s having an adequate supply of food stored up to last a couple weeks, or having money saved up for a rainy day, plan ahead.
