It's July 4th, 8:45 am, from the next room, I can hear strains of Tony Orlando's, "Knock Three Times," and I'm wondering what in the world the Today Show producers were thinking. It's Independence Day for goodness sake! Couldn't they come up with something a little more patriotic?
Maybe I'm just getting older, but it seems when I was a kid, this day was much more revered. People stopped and reflected on what it meant to be free. We thought about our founding fathers, braving the elements to come to a strange and frightening place, all for the promise of freedom. We thought about the courageous men and women who have left the comfort of home, putting themselves in peril to defend our country, many of them paying with their very life's blood.
So for today, let's stop and think about the many things we have to be thankful for. Our faith, our freedom, our families.
Okay, now I feel a little guilty, I can hear Tony singing Neil Diamond's, "Coming to America." Looks like I judged a little too quickly. Well, I guess I have the freedom to be wrong sometimes too...
Have a safe, blessed and thankful Independence Day. Let freedom ring today, in all you do!
(originally posted 7/4/2006)
