May 14- And so, my fellow Americans: Ask not what your country can do for you- ask what you can do for your country…My fellow citizens of the world: Ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man. John F. Kennedy, 35th President 1961-1963, From his Inaugural Address, January 20, 1961, Washington, D.C. "Nothing is as powerful as an idea whose time has come." (attributed to Victor Hugo) Not all great thoughts have to be original to be valid. Timing is also of great importance. It is believed that Kennedy's great quote is a reflection back to his high school days at Choate, (now called Choate Rosemary Hall) a private boarding school in Connecticut. Kennedy was quite a rapscallion and rebellious ring leader in his time at school. He was often at odds with the administration and its headmaster, George St. John. However, it does appear that some of the headmaster's words did sink in. As part of the curriculum, the students would gather for evening chapel services at which the headmaster would give inspirational and motivational talks. A recurring theme of Mr. St. John's sermons was inspired by his own mentor, LeBaron Russell Riggs, dean of Harvard University. In an essay, Briggs writes, "In and out of college the man with ideals helps, so far as in him lies, his college and his country. It is hard for a boy to understand that in life, he helps make or mar the name of his college. As has often been said, the youth who loves his alma mater will always ask not 'What can she do for me?' but 'What can I do for her?'" (Matthews, Chris; "Jack Kennedy:Elusive Hero, Simon & Schuster, New York, New York, 2011, p. 23). Now as a grown man and newly elected leader of the free world, Kennedy rephrases the thought and it becomes a flashpoint and iconic idea and phrase as the world moved into the struggle against Russian communism in the "Cold War" and the "New Frontier" of the 1960's. He calls on all Americans to renew themselves and continue to work for and uphold the American ideals of freedom and human rights: "We observe today not a victory of party but a celebration of freedom--symbolizing an end as well as a beginning--signifying renewal as well as change...Let the word go forth from this time and place, to friend and foe alike, that the torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans...In the long history of the world, only a few generations have been granted the role of defending freedom in its hour of maximum danger. I do not shrink from this responsibility--I welcome it. I do not believe that any of us would exchange places with any other people or any other generation. The energy, the faith, the devotion which we bring to this endeavor will light our country and all who serve it--and the glow from that fire can truly light the world."