Cherry-pick details to fit the narrative. Isn’t that what our history books do? Give the facts that lead up to and through an event. Vilify the antagonist. BUT…weren’t we all children at some point with hopes and dreams? Didn’t we all make the best of whatever situation we found ourselves in? How did our siblings see us? Our parents? How might they have struggled with our choices? It’s easy to laser focus on a point in history. But what about the ripples created by our actions?
John Wilkes Booth’s actions were inexcusable. How each of his siblings reacted was interesting. Ripples. Parents playing favorites. Boys over girls. Ten children, six living to adulthood. A father that was barely home. Ripples. I related to Rosalie, Booth’s oldest sister. Adventurous. Faithful. Invisible. Which details, if they exist, will be cherry-picked to tell her story?
