Americana

Daily Gratitude Year 7-Day 184: Today, I am grateful for Americana.  

Old Navy t-shirts, flags flying, hats with USA embroidered, house decorations on porches and through out the neighborhood... these are things that say it is summer in the "land of the free and the home of the brave". 

This season is one of my favorites. Strangers wishing each other a "Happy Fourth", little ones anticipating the picnics and the sparklers and tomorrow there will be parades, fireworks and so much more. It is summer in the heartland in full red, white and bloom. 

Americana items are more popular some years than others, but they never really go out of style.  I am old enough to remember the Bicentennial in 1776. Everything was red, white and blue. My brother, Matthew, had the sportcoat to prove it, forever captured in one of those classic Olin Mills family pictures. 

When we see Americana items, we are reminded that our freedom was not free. The star spangled banner flew because those who believed in what it stood for would not give up the fight. Tax our tea... we'll learn to drink coffee. The Sons of Liberty were not perfect. They made mistakes, but they dreamed of freedom and they held on until they hammered out the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of these United States of America. 

“We hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness….” -Thomas Jefferson, Declaration of Independence.

This country is still a work in progress. We have some sad and ugly history too that we need to remember so we don't repeat our mistakes. We can't undo wrongs done, but we can seek to make things better for this generation and the generations to come. I am reminded of this quote:

The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing. -Edmund Burke   

We are an eclectic nation full of beautiful people with varied histories and ethnicities. In the eyes of history, we are still a young country. Our choices will drive our destiny. God has blessed this nation in many ways. Have we thanked Him, praised Him, chosen Him and honored Him for his goodness?

Godliness makes a nation great, but sin is a disgrace to any people. -Proverbs 14:34  

Earworm is singing "God Bless the USA" - a favorite of mine for the Fourth of July.  

Today, I am grateful for Americana.