The following handwritten letter was written by President George H. W. Bush to former IBM CEO Sam Palmisano, in December 2009.
Palmisano said, “It says all anyone needs to know about his values.”
Here is the text of the letter:
I cannot single out the one greatest challenge in my life. I have had a lot of challenges and my advice to young people might be as follows
Don’t get down when your life takes a bad turn. Out of adversity comes challenge and often success
Don’t blame others for your setbacks
When things go well, always give credit to others
Don’t talk all the time. Listen to your friends and mentors and learn from them
Don’t brag about yourself. Let others point out your virtues, your strong points.
Give someone else a hand. When a friend is hurting show that friend you care
Nobody likes an overbearing big shot
As you succeed, be kind to people. Thank those who help you along the way
Don’t be afraid to shed a tear when your heart is broken because a friend is hurting.
Say your prayers!!
George Bush
(1) Anonymous, December 9, 2018 3:13 PM
Re: Not being afraid to shed a tear when a friend is hurting
I have to pay a Shiva call today. When I got the bad news I hung up the phone and started crying. I have always been afraid to cry at a Shiva house, and felt I needed to be strong for the avelim. Maybe some tears would not be so terrible.