
As I sat in the back yard of a very dear friend this 4th, I got to celebrate the wonderment of the 4th with a great group of people and my husband and 4 year old son. Between good conversations, and the best food on earth :o) .. the evening was perfect. We waited patiently for the fireworks to begin. From Frank's back yard we could see (between 2 big trees :o)) San Clemente's fireworks. You could even see Oceanside's in the far distance. But it was a little later when the Dana Point fireworks started that everyone became memsmerized by the beauty and excitement of these spectacular shows. Off the hills that were surrounding us, you could hear the echo of the cannons that shot these bright and beautiful displays, and you could hear the cheers of many people from the homes around us, and I believe we could even hear the cheers and whistles of some in Doheny Beach!
We all went home stuffed from our fabulous pot luck and bbq!! Brennan, our son, spoke of the fireworks on the way home..as he was fading a bit from all of the excitement.
It was a perfect night and one that will be remembered!
Now, I sit here and I remember that not once did it enter my mind, why we were celebrating. I was too caught up in the event and people and watching my son watch the event in awe. I'm sure that many of us were unaware of past or future, but we were living the moment, which was a very good one.
I remember being with my family at Legoland one 4th of July. It was after 9/11. We found a patch of grass to sit on with hundreds of other people and watched a spectacular display of fireworks in the sky above us. The demonstration was choreographed to music. The song "America" song by Ray Charles, "Proud to be an American", by Lee Greewood, and so many others, brought tears and sobs from the crowd. People stood with hands over their chests. I sat on a blanket and cried. (We weren't far from Pendleton, there were military in our crowd, just there to enjoy the day with their families) It was still fresh in our minds, the people lost and our brave soldiers now fighting a war. It wasn't long before that Desert Storm was upon us. It was still during that time that when a convoy of soldiers drove down the freeway towards or away from Camp Pendleton that I didn't cry a little bit more, as I sat in my car watching these young men and women in uniform drive by us. I knew what they were preparing for and I knew that they were doing what they felt they needed to do to keep us all safe.
I still have a wonderful time this 4th, but I know that these memories came back to me by something or someone bigger than me. I am listening now, I am remembering.
To all of our soldiers, now and then, to our civilians working on behalf of our freedoms, to those in our government fighting to keep our freedoms intact, to Americans keeping the dreams alive, I thank you!
I pray for all of you, and for our children and for our children's children, that they will know an America that is free of tyranny and that they will know the innocence of childhood as we did, growing up here in this beautiful country!
We all went home stuffed from our fabulous pot luck and bbq!! Brennan, our son, spoke of the fireworks on the way home..as he was fading a bit from all of the excitement.
It was a perfect night and one that will be remembered!
Now, I sit here and I remember that not once did it enter my mind, why we were celebrating. I was too caught up in the event and people and watching my son watch the event in awe. I'm sure that many of us were unaware of past or future, but we were living the moment, which was a very good one.
I remember being with my family at Legoland one 4th of July. It was after 9/11. We found a patch of grass to sit on with hundreds of other people and watched a spectacular display of fireworks in the sky above us. The demonstration was choreographed to music. The song "America" song by Ray Charles, "Proud to be an American", by Lee Greewood, and so many others, brought tears and sobs from the crowd. People stood with hands over their chests. I sat on a blanket and cried. (We weren't far from Pendleton, there were military in our crowd, just there to enjoy the day with their families) It was still fresh in our minds, the people lost and our brave soldiers now fighting a war. It wasn't long before that Desert Storm was upon us. It was still during that time that when a convoy of soldiers drove down the freeway towards or away from Camp Pendleton that I didn't cry a little bit more, as I sat in my car watching these young men and women in uniform drive by us. I knew what they were preparing for and I knew that they were doing what they felt they needed to do to keep us all safe.
I still have a wonderful time this 4th, but I know that these memories came back to me by something or someone bigger than me. I am listening now, I am remembering.
To all of our soldiers, now and then, to our civilians working on behalf of our freedoms, to those in our government fighting to keep our freedoms intact, to Americans keeping the dreams alive, I thank you!
I pray for all of you, and for our children and for our children's children, that they will know an America that is free of tyranny and that they will know the innocence of childhood as we did, growing up here in this beautiful country!
God Bless America!!! God Bless you all! (click here to hear "Proud to be an American")
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