Music & the Spoken Word today was the annual Independence Day Special and we sang six patriotic numbers to celebrate America--its history, its places, its people, and its symbols. Did I enjoy participating? Yes. Was the music uplifting and inspiring? Yes. Do I still think that God inspired men and women which in turn, gave way to the birth of this nation? Absolutely. The internal conflict I always have, though, as we celebrate the United States of America, is having less and less confidence that America still stands for what it originally stood for. I also have less confidence each passing year in its leaders and exactly where they are leading us to. Also, what exactly does it mean to be "an American" these days, anyway?
Despite my conflict, the one lyric that stood out to me the most today (and the one I really felt something while singing) was from the song "God Bless the USA". Along with that title which is always an earnest prayer of mine, there's a lyric that goes "And I'm proud to be an American, where at least I know I'm free."
Amid the challenges and strife this nation is going through on so many different levels, there's some comfort in knowing that as citizens of this country, at least we know we're free. We're still free to dream, to think, to love, to help, and to smile. We're also free to criticize, to protest, to defend, to protect, and to worship. There are lots of things we are still free to do, knowing that all of our actions have consequences that either strengthen this nation, or weaken it. That either give a favorable or unfavorable meaning to the word "American".
I'm thankful for family, friends, and other people in my life who symbolize all that's still good with America. When I look at them, the answer to the question of what it really means to be an American, becomes clearer. They are the ones that carry my hope that this nation will continue to do great things, things that can make us all proud.
Until next time, God be with you.
 |
| Singing "This is Great Country" |
No comments:
Post a Comment