For his last Presidential birthday George Bush received an interesting present from his staff. Birthday cake and a candle were allowed onboard (TSA rules differ on Air Force One I presume) but the gift seemed a little bit odd.
From Yahoo News:
The party for his birthday Sunday was informal; the gift was not.
The staff presented him with a wooden box made from a giant oak tree that fell on the White House lawn in 2007. Some of the wood from the tree, planted by Benjamin Harrison's daughter in 1892, had been sent to Texas to be fashioned into a box about 12-by-18 inches. They filled it with notes and cards from members of his senior staff.
Bush's birthday also was recognized early, as it has been in the past, on the Fourth of July at the White House where people gather on the South Lawn to watch fireworks.
A box? Well I guess it comes from a historical source, planted by a President's daughter more than a century ago. Still, coming from the side that opposes nearly everything he does, the box is a fitting gift as he leaves the White House in a few short months. Of course the box isn't big enough for him to fit inside, but the symbolism is good enough for me.
Oh and by the way, celebrating your birthday on the fourth Mr. President? I'm sure your ego has nothing to do with that, right?
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