"Freedom makes a huge requirement of every human being. With freedom comes responsibility." -
Eleanor Roosevelt
Another Fourth Has Passed . . .
I purposely let the 4th pass by this year without posting some patriotic words, or any slogans—the usual stuff I do. It was hard, for I am the quintessential history buff, patriot, if you will, and I never get the cookout mixed up with the Constitution.
I learned history at the knee of my father, a man who actually only finished the 8th grade before quitting school to support his mother. But the man was obsessed with gaining knowledge and especially a student of history. He’s the one I have mentioned who returned from WWII with the Bronze Star and Purple Heart. And he is the one who was always “in my heart,” so naturally I followed in his footsteps in many ways.
And to that end, I ask the question I have held—What did you think about on the Fourth of July?
Well, I know partial answers to this. Many women were thinking of how much food would be needed for the barbecue, or what if it rains and we have to move indoors, or “I hope I have enough potato salad.”
The men were thinking of grills and raw meat that they would render into the best meal for their guests. Many of you thought of what sports events you might catch on television on this day, or how early did you need to arrive to get the best parking spot near the fireworks display.
Good thoughts all—I have had many of these thoughts myself on holidays. But, there are other thoughts that seem to drown out these activities, as fun and fulfilling as they are as we meet with our friends and families for a good time.
FOR, I was also thinking about . . .
a group of men with names like Washington, Jefferson, Adams, Franklin, Gwinnett, Hall, Walton and all those who signed the Declaration of Independence—that bold document that started our country;
the daring and planning it must have taken to start a Revolution as they pledged their lives, their fortunes and sacred honor;
about all those who fought in that initial conflict to make us a free nation—men who were at Valley Forge and beyond, freezing, with their feet wrapped in whatever they could find, starving, wondering if they were really going to pull off this move to freedom;
about my particular relatives I have discovered through ancestry research who were there, boots on the ground, as this all took place;
about the victory, so hard won, upon which this nation was built;
about the following years, when a nation divided waged a war of the states and fought brother against brother sometimes;
about WWI, WWII and on and on unto the present day;
about the faces I have seen in newsreels as I was the history student studying those faces—faces of those who perhaps did not make it back because they were risking their lives for ME;
about where we are today—are we really appreciative of the sacrifices made so we could enjoy a Fourth of July?
about the duty I have to all those before me to remember and honor their courage and sacrifice;
about just what I can do other than vote my convictions and be vigilant against any who would seek to destroy this country.
I’ll grant you all that I have mentioned is some pretty deep stuff to ponder while one is making the potato salad or stoking the grill. But, then, whether you believe it or not, I am often a pretty deep woman-- more to me than might be apparent. But it is THERE and that is the important thing.
I hope you pondered some of these same thoughts. I know many of you did whether it was a topic of conversation or not. I know this because I know many of you out there are good folks, who honor our freedom as I do, who vote your convictions, who are the ones who have sustained us thus far. God grant us the same courage of those who went before as we strive to remain "one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."*