Labor Day is here, and that means time off from work, backyard barbecues, and final trips to the beach. As fun as that all may seem, it's also a time to reflect on the great work this country has done since the days of the Industrial Revolution — let these patriotic quotes about Labor Day help you do just that. From Grover Cleveland (who, incidentally, signed the bill that made Labor Day an official holiday in 1894), to Lucille Ball, Theodore Roosevelt to Beyonce, Americans have been loud and vocal about the value of hard work throughout the decades. We may not dress up in red, white, and blue to celebrate Labor Day, or set off fireworks, or trade history lessons, but this end-of-summer holiday is still important and patriotic, as it commemorates one of the many things that makes this nation great — America's work ethic.
The beautiful part about having a three-day weekend is that you have one extra day to do something you normally wouldn't. This year, take a few seconds to read up on these inspiring quotes. They will have you instantly feeling proud to be an American, and if that's not a great note to end the summer on, I don't know what is.
1. "Labor Day is devoted to no man, living or dead, to no sect, race, or nation." — Samuel Gompers
2. "Luck? I don’t know anything about luck. I’ve never banked on it and I’m afraid of people who do. Luck to me is something else: Hard work — and realizing what is opportunity and what isn’t." — Lucille Ball
3. "All labor that uplifts humanity has dignity and importance and should be undertaken with painstaking excellence." — Martin Luther King Jr.
4. "Far and away the best prize that life has to offer is the chance to work hard at work worth doing." — Theodore Roosevelt
5. "Dignify and glorify common labor. It is at the bottom of life that we must begin, not at the top." — Booker T. Washington
6. "If any man tells you he loves America, yet hates Labor, he is a liar. If any man tells you he trusts America, yet fears labor, he is a fool." — Abraham Lincoln
7. "A truly American sentiment recognizes the dignity of labor and the fact that honor lies in honest toil." — Grover Cleveland
8. "I believe in the dignity of labor, whether with head or hand; that the world owes no man a living but that it owes every man an opportunity to make a living." — John D. Rockefeller
9. "Power means happiness; power means hard work and sacrifice." — Beyonce
Images: Pixabay; Giphy (4)
