Just finishing lunch…smoked salmon, salad, veggie chips, and cherries. Yum! Merlin and I have already been for one long walk this morning while the world was still new, damp, and only slightly warm. There were ravens cawing, gold finches flashing yellow, meadow larks trilling, ‘flutterbys flitting, and green and gold pastures high in summer grasses for winter hay. The skies couldn’t be more clear or more blue. The start of a beautiful, magical day. My morning connection with the natural world is a good one. The sun on my bare shoulders is priceless.
So, after my walk this morning I decided to stay home tonight. I’m just content being where I am doing what I am today, and that’s really enough for me.
And it’s the Fourth of July. My family has a long, long military history. I can’t help but think of the sacrifices they and many others made so that I and this nation can enjoy our freedoms that so many take for granted. We can choose the religion of our preference or not, we can speak our minds and express ourselves, we choose our partners, we have a right to privacy, and we can live our lives the way we want within the bounds of the law which is quite reasonable for most. Citizens of other countries can’t always attest to the freedoms we enjoy as Americans. I can’t help but remember a teacher/friend who returned to the states with his wife and children after being in Saudi for five years. His wife showed those visiting their home, self-included, the birka that the wife and daughters had to wear in public to shop. If they did not wear one, they could be beaten in public by any man. That was in Saudi Arabia just a couple years ago.
We are a fortunate nation. Recognize the citizens who have fought for generations to keep us free. I am, I will say, non-confrontational and a pacifist. I personally do not believe in using violence to solve problems, but I appreciate those who have fought for me and the privileges I enjoy. I don’t think violence is always necessary to gain human rights and equal rights, but too often this is what the world resorts to instead of intellect and diplomacy. It always has.
Freedom. It’s not just about the Revolutionary War or the signing of Declaration of Independence to me, although the D of I was huge in terms of human rights. It’s about all the skirmishes and struggles this country has endured to safeguard our freedom from the founding fathers, to the House and the Senate, to organized protests, assassinations, conflicts, terrorism, and wars. To me, it’s a celebration of the personal freedoms we enjoy in this country that have continued to improve and expand over time. I’m so very thankful to live in these times. My deepest, sincerest “thank you” to those who have fought to keep America free. And my love and gratitude to Capt. Daniel Newbern, Calvin Sears, to George Franklin Newbern, and James Kermit Newbern who fought in the Civil War to the Vietnam “Conflict,” uncles and cousins. From their Purple Hearts to their Meritorious Service Medals, you are the honorable men remembered in my family’s oral history.
The bottle rockets are starting to whiz and bang. My dog, Merlin, runs to me with each one with huge, liquid brown puppy eyes and a whimper looking for safety. I will be offering him more love, more hugs, and more understanding this evening. I, too, understand his fear of a violent world. We will listen to music most of the day and into the night. We both like music. He really likes Dave Mathews Band best. So, my fourth will be at home, doing things that make me happy, and calming my furry companion. It’s what I want to do today, and I have a choice. Unfettered, unrestrained, and free. Thank you, America, for the right to be me.
-Patricia
