It’s the Fourth of July, a very introspective day for me. You see I know enough about my family tree to know that I have four Revolutionary War patriots hanging out back there. I think knowing our history and where we come from is important not because it makes us any better than anyone else but because it’s what makes us who we are. I love that one side of my family tree is full of people who came to America with a sense of adventure and helped build this country and the other side is the story of immigrants, people who came to this country later because they believed in a slightly different American dream. All of them came ready to a great unknown, ready to roll up their sleeves and get to work. All of them came here and made a life and a home. I’m feeling a little more introspective about July Fourth since friends started sharing a video of people being asked why we celebrate the Fourth of July and they didn’t know.
Sometimes I try to imagine what it must have been like to live in this country when so much of it was unknown, small areas were settled but outside of that was the great unknown. Who knew how big the land mass was or what else was out there? I mean we know now but they didn’t then. They came to an unknown land and found things that were unknown and unexpected. In retrospect they did some things we might have wished they would’ve done differently but I feel confident they did the best they could with the information they had.
Today, I will think of the Patriots in my family tree who fought for Freedom, whose blood is part of the fabric of this country and I am grateful that because they braved the unknown to start a life here and fought for independence, I can say I am an American and I will watch the fireworks pierce the darkness and think of them.
Julia Slaughter 