I'm facinated with the proceedings of a state funeral - the pomp and grandeur surrounding the final farewell to a public servant who has devoted a lifetime to making a difference. Over the past few years, I have been glued to the television through three such funerals, including Governor Carnahan and Presidents Reagan and Ford.

I recorded Carnahan's funeral via a very fuzzy antenna connection and watched it on a 9-inch black and white TV. A few years later, I had Tivo for capturing all the sights and sounds of Reagan's funeral to watch and dump to VHS later. For Ford's funeral, I not only had the DVR going at home, but I was able to listen live on satellite radio as the motorcade moved from the National Cathedral to Andrews AFB.

The past week has been filled with bipartisan praise for the nation's 38th president, fostering a sense of political unity in Washington, D.C. that was again abandoned this morning as the power in both houses was shifted to a different party and talk of shutting one party out of legislative decision-making took the spotlight on Fox & Friends. What was it about Gerald Ford that made politicians from both sides get along? Was it just a dream that Jimmy Carter and Donald Rumsfeld both eulogized the same political leader? Was Gerald Ford really that great, or was it all just a show of respect?

I grew up in a family of Democrats. I've commented before that my dad and grandpa thought Bill Clinton walked on water, and if it were possible for him to be elected again, they would vote for him over any other person alive. Reagan and Bush were bad words in our house. Growing up, the only thing I ever heard my dad say about Ford was "he wasn't bad for someone that no one elected." That was better than anything I heard about other Republicans. Over the past few days, I've learned a lot about the man who occupied the White House for 895 days just a few years before I was born.

Shortly after 9-11, David Frum wrote a book about President Bush called The Right Man. It's an insider's view about how Bush handled the national crisis in a way that few others would, and how he was the right man for the job. The same title could be used for a biography of Gerald Ford. Given a failing economy, a presidential scandal and a war, few men would have had the ability and courage to lead the country the way President Ford did, especially with a nation that was so hurt by the previous administration. Then again, few men would have been the right man for the job.

Normally, pardoning a president with such a record as Richard Nixon's would be political suicide, and in 1974 it would make sense that many people would hold that against the newly installed leader. It stands to reason that those whose confidence in elected officials had been so deeply hurt by the Watergate scandal would be ready to burn Ford at the stake for allowing such actions to go unpunished. Anyone could clearly reason that it was a case of someone who had been hand-selected as Nixon's replacement repaying the deed to his friend by granting a presidential pardon. But Ford had something else in mind, and he disregarded what political pundits and the general public believed and chose, instead, to do what he felt was best for the country. In hindsight, we can see that his decision to forego allowing the nation's nightmare to continue with hearings and lawsuits to take down the entire leadership was the right choice. Unfortunately for Ford, it wasn't easy to see at the time, and it cost him the gratitude he deserved and instead bought the scorn of the country.

Being the only president to ever serve without being elected president or vice president, Ford didn't carry the baggage that burdens most politicians. He was thrust into the position in a matter of months and was given the chance to heal the nation in its greatest time of need. It must have been a humbling experience to stand in the Oval Office and realize that he did not belong there - that he was not the person chosen for the job - but that he was entrusted with the course of the country. We've been told that he was chosen because of his impecable character - something that Nixon lacked, but something he sought in a vice presidential appointment, knowing he would soon be leaving office. The humility with which Ford approached his new position must have been something rarely seen behind the president's desk. That humility and servantheartedness was made clear as he stood before the cameras and told the American people, "I am acutely aware that you have not elected me as your President by your ballots, and so I ask you to confirm me as your President with your prayers."

As a member of what has come to be known as "the Greatest Generation," Gerald Ford was a true patriot. As a World War II veteran, his national pride was the backbone of his presidency. He knew the sacrifices that had been made to create and protect the government that he was now charged with defending.

One more observation of Ford's character - as a former president, he did not openly criticize the actions of the sitting president. Although he disagreed, he kept remarks private, insisting that they not be released until that president's administration had ended. One of the most respectable virtues of a true American President is the ability to disagree with current policy and not be vocal about that disagreement. I believe Ford showed true respect for the office throughout his post-White House years.

He had the character to make the unpopular decisions, the humility to serve a country in need with no regard to his own ambitions, and the dedication of a true patriot. In the "hour of history that (troubled) our minds and (hurt) our hearts," Gerald Ford was the right man. My prayer is that when history writes its stories about my life, the same can be said of me.