A Dialogue Between the Head and Heart

MY DEAR MADAM, ---Having performed the last sad office of handing you into your carriage...and seen the wheels get actually into motion, I turned on my heel and walked, more dead than alive, to the opposite door,  where my own was awaiting me.

This is the opening line from a letter written by Thomas Jefferson to Maria Cosway dated October 12, 1786.  (Mrs. Cosway, a famous Italian-English beauty and accomplished painter, captivated Jefferson during his stay in Paris.)

The letter is known as Jefferson's "Head and Heart Letter."

I find the letter fascinating.  Beautifully written.  Honest.  I also believe it gives insight into Jefferson's playfulness and reveals part of his charm.

More importantly, however, the letter illuminates the tug-of-war that exists in all of us.  Some of us are very emotional.  Others more logical.  Often I hear people say, "I'm a math/science person" or "I'm an art/English person."  The reality is that we are both.  That's because we are human beings.

What is best is not always what feels best.  What feels best is not always what is best.

Child rearing.  Teaching.  Guiding.  Coaching.  Working. Playing. Eating.  Drinking.  Romance.

You name it, we are constantly battling with ourselves.

Who wins out?  The head or the heart?

Sometimes the head.  Sometimes the heart.

The battle rages on...



Retrato de Mrs. Cosway (by Richard Cosway)