Two hundred thirty-eight years. Thats how old America is. In the pantheon of nations, were still pretty young. There has been a Rome for almost 2,800 years. The Greek city-state of Athens is almost 3.500 years old. Egypt is far older at 5,300. What makes us different is that on July 4, 1776, a roomful of men on a hot Philadelphia summers day stood for all of us, like godparents at a baptism of sorts, taking an oath, swearing a pact, uniting the people of this nation together. America isnt a flag. Weve had many. Stars have been added one-by-one over the years. You can burn the flag and our nation still remains. America is not the physical copy of the Constitution. Long after the parchment locked behind glass at the National Archive fades and crumbles into dust, the ideals that it embodies will endure. America not a plot of earth. From 13 Atlantic colonies, we moved across the continent. No one would dare assert that Boston or Baltimore is more American than Boise or LA, or even Miami. Its not that America is a prize held by one race or one religion. Were a Christian nation. And a Jewish nation. And a Muslim nation. And a Buddhist nation. And a nation for people with no religion at all. What America really is a promise that was made by our forefathers, and our foremothers, too. A promise that we share. One that was not perfect when we made it. One that is not perfect now. But one that together we strive to make perfect -- to form, as the Constitution says, a “more perfect union.” So happy birthday, America and happy birthday to us all.
Posted on: Sat, 05 Jul 2014 00:03:17 +0000