No, I couldn't think of a flashy title, just the plain, hard, truth. After working a twelve hour day I met my husband for our local fireworks display, an event I have enjoyed since childhood. As a child and for many adult years I would sit on the 4th of July and reflect on my gratitude to live in this country, and the courage of the men who were responsible for our Declaration of Independence.
Tonight I sat back in my lawn chair scanning the skyline for the first burst of lights, and when they came flying up into the night sky my tears came flowing.
Tears for the disgrace our country has made of what this holiday stands for, we let it happen, distracted by "getting there". Getting our educations, homes, cars, gadgets, toys, vacations.....getting, getting, getting. We lost sight of what "pursuit of happiness" truly means and now we stand at the threshold of losing our freedoms and our liberty.
Then came tears of rage when they played "God Bless the USA", the hypocrisy of the words compared to the actions of our government. My mind was flashing through pictures I had seen on this site, and other sites, showing the true pictures of what we have done to our own fellow Americans, and to innocent women, children, and men in Iraq. "I am proud to be an American, where at least I know I'm free" BULLSHIT!!! I watched so many around mean mouthing the words to that song with a starry gaze in their eyes and I wanted to scream at them and shake them and tell them it is bull shit, you are not free, and it is YOU who are letting it happen.
The rage quickly passed into a deep sense of grief and sadness over the fact that my nephew will never be able to sit and watch fireworks again. He might have made it through two tours in Iraq, but the sounds and the flashes trigger to many horrible memories for him to ever find enjoyment again. The festivities of his first 4th of July home last year quickly faded as PTSD kicked in and he fled for home.
Most of all I cried because 2538 of our fellow Americans will never again sit in their hometown and kick back with their families on this holiday, or any other occasion.
The finale was the "Star Spangled Banner" and as I listened to the part "...gave proof through the night that our flag was still there...." I prayed that after the dark night our country is going through, with the Bush crime syndicate running it, that we will live to see a dawn where our flag is proudly flying for what our Declaration of Independence and our Constitution stand for.
Tommmorow, I will rage and be ready to fight again, but tonight I cried.