“Bring me men to match my mountains;bring me men to match my plains.
Men with empires in their purpose,
and new eras in their brains.”
-Sam Walter Foss
Last night we were at another Bay Area dinner for GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney. Mitt talked about his childhood when his parents drove them all across the United States to visit America’s National Parks. Along the drive the Romney’s would read to their kids from Irving Stone’s historical classic about settling the west, Men to Match My Mountains.
It was during those trips Mitt fell in love with the beauty and grandeur of this country. His parents continued the road trip tradition, taking their twenty-five grandchildren on the same trek.
Mitt recently learned that the book's title came from an 1894 poem by Sam Walter Foss. The poem, “The Coming American,” ends with the lines: “Bring Me Men!” (like the old theme from the Air Force Academy).
Mitt memorized the first four lines of the poem (typed above) because they speak to his desire to end the government waste and domination over regulation that cripples free enterprise. “Men with empires in their purpose” are the kind of men we need to make America great.
Mitt’s a phenomenal leader and while I’m uber-biased I do believe he is the only Republican candidate that has a shot to win after the primary election. Of course the Democrats never criticize Newt, they’d love to have Obama challenge a Republican like Gringrich.
So getting Mitt through the primary is still a big hurdle. It’s frustrating to see his vision for the country and then see the polls favor men who lack character and integrity. Drives me crazy!
So, I’ll finish this post by quoting the last lines of the poem. Mitt only included the four opening lines in his remarks but to me, the whole poem epitomizes the kind of men of faith and inspiration that Mitt Romney exemplifies and that this country needs to lead our country.
“Bring me men to match my mountains, Men to match their majesty,
Men to climb beyond their summits, Searching for their destiny.
These are men to build a nation, Join the mountains to the sky,
Men of faith and inspiration, Bring me men, bring me men, bring me men!” -Sam Walter Foss, The Coming American
