When I was little, my mother was really into freebies. She'd send away for all kinds of free things, and one of them included a postcard from Amy Carter, the daughter of President Jimmy Carter, who was in office at that time.
Amy was just a little bit older than me, and receiving this postcard from the daughter of the president of the United States in our mailbox in a tiny town in the middle of an island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean shifted my view of the world and my place in it.
I became interested in civics, student government, and public service, which ultimately shaped many aspects of my life and worldview. I'm certain I'm not the only little girl who was so positively impacted by these postcards from Amy, which she signed with a little drawing of her cat, Misty.
Many years later, as an adult, I discovered this photo of Amy and her father in the Carter archives. I had it printed and sent it away to be signed by President Carter. A couple of months later, it came back to me signed. It hangs on the wall of my office, reminding me of the roots of the better angels of my nature.
On this National Day of Mourning for Jimmy Carter, I thank the Carter family for their service to humanity and for nurturing the same sense of duty in me.
