On the anniversary of the Hamilton/Burr duel let's look at the little known tragedy in Burr's life

Aaron Burr.  The name still makes people uneasy even though he was exonerated of any wrong doing in a supposed plot to overthrow the government, and went on to live a long life riddled with tragedy. 

I've read both Ron Chernow's book on Hamilton and Susan Isenberg's book on Burr and have concluded that both Burr and Hamilton were just as complex characters as Thomas Jefferson.  Hamilton, well know for his duel challenges, and Burr well know for his aversion to dueling.  Yet, there they were in Weehawken, NJ doing what irrational men do when their history of conflict reaches a boiling point. 


We can debate many aspects of Hamilton and Burr, but I would like to focus on Aaron Burr's relationship with his only child, Theodosia, and the tragedy of her very short life. 

One thing I found fascinating about Burr and his relationship with his young daughter was their practice of writing daily letters to each other.  Regardless of whether they were apart or together.  I have been using this practice with my son.  I have to say it has been a tremendous bonding experience that I hope to continue as long as possible.
Say what you will about Aaron Burr, but his devotion to making sure his daughter had every educational opportunity available to her was surprising for the time.  Not only that, Burr opened his home to foreign struggling artists and guests of all varieties, including Mohawk chief Joseph Brant¹, giving Theodosia an upbringing many woman would have cherished for it's progressive atmosphere.  Not to mention the family background of philosophical and religious thought.  Aaron Burr was the son of a minister who was a president of Princeton.  His maternal grandfather was the famed Rev Jonathan Edwards. 
With this ready made lineage it's not a wonder why Alexander Hamilton may have felt defensive of his rocky family lineage and foreign birth, possibly feeling he had to work ten times harder than those of privilege.  Not an excuse, but a possible window into his "chip on the shoulder" attitude that had him challenging several individuals to duels, including the father-in-law of Albert Gallatin, Commodore James Nicholson.  Hamilton was a Federalist in the New York City area surrounded by up and coming Jeffersonian Republicans such as Gallatin, Nicholson, and Burr, with Clinton and Livingston seeing less influence in NY politics.  It's easy to imagine Hamilton seeing a connected vision to unseat Federalist, and against him.
The irony of Theodosia's upbringing cannot be more devastating than when, at age 17, she chose to marry a rich older man, whom by most counts she didn't really love or hardly knew, all to save her father from massive debt. Theodosia married Joseph Alston from South Carolina who was a wealthy plantation owner.  Add to that the sale of her family estate to John Jacob Astor who parceled off the land, sold it for a huge profit establishing his rags to riches climb from fur trapper to entrepreneur, all under the eyes of Aaron Burr and his loss of status throughout his life².
His beloved Theodosia died at sea, age 29.  While the duel with Alexander Hamilton started his downward spiral, it's hard to image surviving the loss of a beloved wife (1794), [remember the duel was in 1804] the trial for treason 1807, his daughter's death 1813, and his living until 1836, thus losing his entire past. 
I'm reminded when studying history that people are just as complex as I, sometimes much more so, but it is up to us to dig deep enough for a true glimpse into human beings, their flaws and their strengths.

                   Below picture is public domain painted by artist John Vaderlyn

¹Fallen Founder: The Life of Aaron Burr, Nancy Isenberg, Penguin Books, 2007.  This is a very readable, in-depth study of Burr's life and is highly recommended.  The new work of Burr, The Aaron Burr Conspiracy, James E. Lewis, Jr., Princeton University Press, 2017, would be great additional reading on the trial.

²Albert Gallatin: Jeffersonain Financier and Diplomat, Raymond Walters, Jr., University of Pittsburg Press, 1957.  The Life of Aaron Burr, Nancy Isenberg, Penguin Books, 2007.

Planetary alignment and the meaning of July 4th

I know...astrology? really?.  Hear me out...

I'm not one that sees the world through the generic astrological charts of time, yet I do pay attention to the phenomenon that is astrology.  Something that many people do not realize, astrology is the intricate mathematical study of planetary alignments. You can ignore it completely and live a very full life.  I chose to learn from everything life has to offer.  For me, I find specifics in astrology that are hard to deny.  Generalities abound when you know very little about astrology.  Your sun sign is that generality, and you will find that definitions are way too misleading. You actually have many aspects to your chart that have significant influence, melded together giving you an interesting picture of planetary influence.

Most of July is the month of Cancer, the crab, the tribal self.  The planetary alignment of our country, if you use the event, July 4, 1776, 12 Midnight in Philadelphia, gives you 13 planetary alignments through a time continuum.  As a planet with many water signs we are a sensitive, tribal nation that the world sees as petulant, immature, and spoiled. So, let's look at the chart.

No surprise is the sun sign of Cancer, but also the strength of finding Mercury, Venus and Jupiter also in the house of Cancer.  Lots of water signs that represent feminine energy within, tribal, familial energy, and a hard shell to protect that sensitive, loyal self that can be stubborn.  I'm no expert, by any means, but I've learned a lot over the years by speaking to experts in the field, being surprised to find many that are very grounded, analytical, and more mathematician than spiritualist.

Something that is not talked about, in generic zodiac sun sign horoscopes, is the rising sign, which is how you are perceived to be, many times not reflecting your true inner self.  For the United States of America, our birth of July 4, 1776, we are an Aries rising, fitting perfectly into how we are perceived as petulant, immature, and spoiled by the world, yet courageous and impulsive.

On this important celebration day of Liberty, and the deaths of two of our most important founders, John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, let us remind ourselves,of our true inner sovereignty that reflects our collective human family that is unlike any other country.  Let us celebrate our feminine wisdom at our core.  We will prevail against the tyranny we face and rise above our history of inner struggles for liberty, equality, and responsibility to life and the pursuit of happiness.

Happy 4th America!
Robin Williams and the flag