Due to this past Monday being Presidents Day, many of us got to enjoy a three-day weekend. I don’t know about you, but until I started working a job that allowed employees to be off on Presidents Day, I never thought anything about it, its significance, purpose, what presidents were being remembered…nothing.
Initially, February 22nd was set out to honor the birthday of the nation’s first president, George Washington; from 1879-1967, it did just that. In 1968, the day of celebration was moved from the 22nd to the third Monday in February to give federal employees an extended weekend. Then, honoring Abraham Lincoln, the president who wrote the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863 during the Civil War, was added to the celebration in some states. Lincoln’s birthday was February 12th. That’s when the third Monday became dubbed Presidents Day.
“The holiday is also a tribute to the general who created the first military badge of merit for the common soldier. Revived on Washington’s 200th birthday in 1932, the Purple Heart medal (which bears Washington’s image) is awarded to soldiers who are injured in battle. As with Memorial Day and Veterans Day, Washington’s birthday offers another opportunity for the United States to honor its veterans” (usembassy.gov).
There are many great reasons to observe Presidents Day. For me, the most important one is having an extra day to kick up my feet or get some extra work done. Either way, I count it as a blessing.
