Historians have long known Lucy was in occasional touch with the president and returned to FDR’s circle late in the war; she was with him when he died. But a hitherto unpublished letter of Lucy’s to the president–found in FDR’s daughter’s papers at Hyde Park–now reveals much closer ties between the two than has been previously understood. Apparently written in 1941, the note is practical, emotional, chatty, and sad. Lucy jokes about catching a cold when he has one because they talk on the telephone and suggests businessmen who might help with the war effort. Mostly, the note is an epistolary effort to reassure the harried FDR, whom she calls “poor darling.”
In a dreamy postscript, Lucy talks of things as she would like them to be–and, possibly, how she would have liked them to have been if affairs of the heart had turned out differently. “If only it will be a friendly world–a small house would be a joy–and one could grow vegetables as well as flowers–or instead of–oh dear–there is so much I should like to know–how much hope you have–…” Roosevelt had chosen duty over her, and she respected his decision. “I know one should be proud–very very proud of your Greatness–instead of wishing for the soft life–of joy–and… the world shut out,” Lucy writes. “One is proud–and thankful for what you have given to the world… the fate of all that is good is in your dear blessed & Capable hands.”
