Independence Day

This week we celebrate Independence Day. The perfect excuse for BBQ's, family gatherings and, of course, fireworks. I wonder how often most people reflect on what this day truly means.

Freedom isn't free and we must never forget who gets the credit for the freedoms we have, of which we should be eternally grateful. The following is a poem worthy of repeating and sharing.

FREEDOM ISN'T FREE

I watched the flag pass by one day.

It fluttered in the breeze.

A young Marine saluted it,

And then he stood at ease.

I looked at him in uniform; so young, so tall, so proud.

With hair cut square and eyes alert, he'd stand out in any crowd.

I thought how many men like him had fallen through the years.

How many died on foreign soil; how many mothers' tears?

How many pilots' planes shot down?

How many died at sea?

How many foxholes were soldiers' graves?

NO, FREEDOM ISN'T FREE.

I heard the sound of Taps one night,

when everything was still.

I listened to the bugler play

And felt a sudden chill.

I wondered just how many times

That Taps had meant 'Amen.'

When a flag had draped a

coffin of a brother or a friend.

I thought of all the children,

of the mothers and the wives,

of fathers, sons and husbands

With interrupted lives.

I thought about a graveyard

At the bottom of the sea.

Of unmarked graves in Arlington

NO FREEDOM ISN'T FREE!

Enjoy the holiday with your friends and loved ones. Be safe and use caution with alcohol and fireworks. And while you're watching those fireworks with your loved ones, say a prayer of thanks for those who fought the good fight, for their families who continued on, for those currently serving on duty for their sacrifices. Then say a prayer of praise; while this isn't the most perfect country in the world, it remains the best country in the world to live in, in my humble opinion.

Happy Fourth of July! >^,,^<