Imagine you are the youngest son, 8th of the 10 siblings. 2 of your brothers have died, and your family isn’t rich. You had to dropout of school to get work for your family. Benjamin Franklin had all of that happen to him. Also he accomplished many things as well. A lot of them being of great importance. Like proving lightning is electricity or being a founding father. Those were just two of the many things Benjamin did in his life.InventionsBenjamin Franklin was famous for lots of things. But most people agree that he was most famous for his inventions. His most commonly known and famous invention was the lightning rod. Benjamin Franklin attached a metal key to kite and flew it in a storm. When the kite got electrocuted, so did the key. This experiment proved that lightning is electricity. From there, Benjamin created the lightning rod, a long, tall, metal pole that attracted the lightning so the house wouldn’t get struck and set on fire. This invention helped people keep their houses safe. Benjamin Franklin also had other inventions. He invented the Franklin Stove, which saved fuel, the Bifocals, a combination of reading and distance glasses so someone didn’t have to switch, the Glass Armonica, a musical instrument that became popular, and the Rocking Chair, a chair to rock back and forth. Patriot Later in his life, Benjamin Franklin did some political things. He was 1 of the 7 founding fathers. This led him to be an excellent leader. His importance led him to helping draft the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution. Benjamin Franklin was very crucial in Pennsylvania. Benjamin was elected the Pennsylvania assemblyman in 1787. Although Benjamin Franklin was very old, he was also very wise. He was a part of the Society for Political Inquiries, which focused on improving the knowledge of the government. He even proposed a plan for uniting the colonies under a national congress. Even though this plan was denied, it helped lay the ground for the Articles of Confederation, which became the first constitution of the U.S. when it raffled in 1781. This Quote, “where liberty dwells, there is my country”, was found in a letter to Benjamin Vaughan on March 14, 1783.ChildhoodOn January 17, 1706, Benjamin Franklin was born. He was the 8th out of 10 children. He was also the youngest son of a youngest son going back 5 generations. Benjamin Franklin had to learn to deal with loss and death. He had 2 brothers that died. One was lost at sea, and one died at 16 months. As a child, Benjamin was intelligent. He created flippers out of wood to help him win a race against his friends. He loved to swim, and was a great swimmer, so the flippers helped him a lot. Benjamin’s parents, Josiah and Abiah Franklin, sent him to Boston Latin School, an expensive school, because Benjamin was brilliant. But, he dropped out at the age of 10, to become an apprentice. When he was a child, Benjamin Franklin learned a hard lesson. He had earned some money. He had happily gone to the store to get something. A child asked for the money in exchange for a whistle. Benjamin obliged, and only later did he find out the train whistle was four times less expensive than what he had paid. Benjamin learned the lesson the hard way that day.Jobs          When it came to being an apprentice, choosing a job was hard for young Benjamin Franklin. His brilliant mind had trouble finding a job. His father wanted him to become a candle maker like himself, but Benjamin refused. He and his father thought of many jobs, like minister or a preacher. Finally, they came across the perfect job: printing. Benjamin’s brother was a printer, so Benjamin worked for him as an apprentice. This went on for a while. When the paper had some not appropriate things, Benjamin’s brother went to jail. So, Benjamin had to take over the printing shop for a while. Later in life, he opened a printing shop. That was in 1728. In 1729 he also owned and published the Pennsylvania Gazette, when he later published Poor Richard’s Almanack. London and FranceThen Benjamin set out for London. He did some important work. In London, 1724-1726, he did some more relaxing things like read, he swam, and attend theater performances. But, he also did some important stuff. Benjamin did some of his printing in London. In 1757, he traveled to London as a representative of the Pennsylvania assembly. Benjamin had been elected representative in 1751. With his way of peace, he settled tax disputes and other important things. Benjamin Franklin mostly lived in London until 1775, when he returned to Philadelphia. Benjamin Franklin was elected commissioner for France in 1776, after the colonies voted for independence, making him the first U.S. ambassador for France. Benjamin sailed for a treaty of support with France. His friendliness led to the treaty of paris, ending the Revolutionary War. After a decade at France, Benjamin Franklin returned to the U.S. and left France in 1785.DeathOn April 17, 1790, Benjamin Franklin passed away at the home of his daughter, in Pennsylvania. He was 84 years old. When Benjamin was 22, he had already created his gravestone. It said: “The body of B. Franklin, Printer, Lies Here, Food for Worms. But the Work shall not be Lost; For it Will Appear once More In a New and More Elegant Edition Revised and Corrected By the Author.” Although Benjamin wrote this, his gravestone actually said: “Benjamin and Deborah Franklin 1790.” His kindness led to him donating his money to charity and museums that needed it. Benjamin Franklin was very important. 20,000 people came to his funeral when he was buried in Philadelphia’s Christ Church cemetery.I challenge you to be more like Benjamin Franklin, to stand for your country, to know right from wrong, and to use your mind to help the people in need. We need more people like -Benjamin Franklin in the future to help us overcome obstacles that we will face later on. We need to not fight each other, but fight together. Because, as Benjamin Franklin once said, “We must, indeed, all hang together or, most assuredly, we shall all hang separately.”