One of my favorite quotes, on the study of history:

“Turned wrong way around, the relentless unforeseen was what we schoolchildren studied as history, harmless history, where everything unexpected in its own time is chronicled on the page as inevitable.

The terror of the unforeseen is what the science of history hides, turning a disaster into an epic.”

-Philip Roth

Found at Memphis Department of History via Google.

This quote is quite profound.  When we study history, it seems as if events are pre-ordained.  Nothing could be farther from the truth.  Just as we don’t know what our future holds, previous generations had to deal with trying time and a terrifying, uncertain future.

They were strong enough to prevail.  Do we have the will to follow in their footsteps?  Our children and their children will be our judges.  We need to fight to ensure their future is as bright as our forefathers made ours.