Wow! Did it come fast or what? It seems we were just in the deep freeze of winter and now we are preparing to celebrate the ‘4th’. The Independence Day holiday is by far one of the biggest and best times of the year to those of us who proudly consider ourselves ‘flag wavers’.
When you filter out the vitriol, the whining, and the gnashing of teeth by our nation’s detractors and malcontents – and the haters in Washington DC and in Hollywood – who have made it clear that they will be working for those coming here illegally now, and not for American citizens, our countrymen and women are proud to be Americans. And the Independence Day weekend gives us the chance to celebrate the fact that we live in the greatest and most unique nation the world has ever known. The weather usually cooperates and is warm and sunny and there are great outdoor activities happening all around us to make it even better.
In addition to the great summer temperatures, this holiday brings with it so much more. The red, white and blue of our flag flying everywhere you look, the concerts, the parades, the fireworks are exciting and heartwarming. The ceremonies being held to observe the sacrifices that those who came before us and into the present day made and are still making are patriotic to the core. It reminds us how truly fortunate we are to live here.
This is a time to enjoy the cherished traditions that we as Americans have been observing for over 200 years and continue to enjoy so much. It’s also a time to reinforce our commitment to never allow enemies, foreign or home grown, to accomplish their goal and take away those liberties and the freedom we should all cherish.
Our amazing Founding Fathers in their wisdom and with guidance from God had a vision of what a great and prosperous nation should look like. They worked long and hard to put together that incredible document – the Constitution of the United States – which has guided us through all the good times and bad and still does so today. They sacrificed much to get our nation to where it is today.
There are some who say, and even some who hope, that America’s best days are in the past. But most of us disagree. American patriots are freedom loving and rugged individualists who are determined that as great as our country was and is, it will be greater still in the years to come because proud Americans won’t have it any other way.
And yet, along with all the ceremony, pomp and circumstance that is still part of the tradition of Independence Day there are the other traditions that we can take part in and enjoy, if we so choose. Why not get out and indulge in everything else this holiday has to offer. Some will travel to a Cape Cod or a Rhode Island beach. Others might decide to take a trip to the Mountains of New Hampshire or Maine. If you stay local, there are 3 miles of beautiful beaches in South Boston along with parks for baseball, softball and other sports. There are the concert and fireworks at the Esplanade as well and so much more.
Back yard gatherings with family, friends or neighbors will be happening everywhere or maybe you’d prefer to just stay at home and enjoy that much deserved day off from work. Whatever you choose to do and however you decide to celebrate, it’s America’s birthday. We are Americans and we deserve a party and will surely have one.
Let no one ruin or disrupt the celebration of our magnificent heritage and independence. And doing so with Old Glory proudly waving in the summer breeze will make it that much better and help put you in the spirit even more. At least it will for us ‘flag wavers’; so proud to be Americans and we make no apologies for it.
