Growing up, July 4th was, outside of the big four (Christmas, Easter, Halloween, Thanksgiving), the most exciting holiday to me. It was loud, bright and busy. The day was usually full of food, family and fun. But all of that was merely killing time until darkness fell and the main event begun: Fireworks. Not only were they bright and loud, they were explosives! Freakin’ explosives! It was dangerous, which is about as cool as anything can be for a young male.
Earlier this year, the Lynches traveled to Washington D.C. and did the whole tourist thing. We visited with Sen. Kloubachar and saw all of the sites, including the mounuments, White House and Capital. That trip has me thinking about July 4th more seriously than ever before. It is not just that it marks the day we decided to become a free nation, but that we still are. As I look around the world, there are so many countries whose declaration of freedom resulted in single parties in individuals grabbing power and putting themselves, or their ethnic group, above all else. As flawed as this country is, we have stayed true to our beginnings, evolving where needed, and give citizens the opportunity to change the government every two years.
For me, today’s celebration is as much about that as it is about the actions that took place in 1776.
