McSTREAMY.COM (Garytalk by Gary Morgan) – Millions of people spend many wonderful minutes, hours, and days experiencing a grand and glorious 4th of July celebration. The 4th of July week is the time for citizens of the United States, young and old, rich and poor, near and far, famous and ordinary, male and female, north and south, east and west, of many ancestral backgrounds and colors of skin, to celebrate the Independence of the United States of America.

No matter where U.S. citizens are located, it should be, and is traditionally a grand weekend to celebrate, not only the birth of the USA, but the country, itself, of which they are a citizen, and the Freedoms we citizens enjoy. However, it is more than a Holiday. It should also be a reminder that all that we United States citizens enjoy, must not be just accepted as a given.

Our Freedoms and way of life, in order to continue as such, is the responsibility of everyone to sustain it, protect it, and cherish it. We can do that in several ways.

First, we can pay attention to what’s going on in our country, news-wise, keep track of how our politicians and courts sometimes want to alter the course of events, if we let them. We, as responsible people, must, individually, not just get our news from one source that sometimes narrows our view to the exclusion of common sense.

We can exercise our right to vote to make change happen, or to preserve what we have. Politicians should represent us and protect our way of life, not try to eat away at our Freedoms and alter our country’s direction. That is ultimately our responsibility. It is true that we each, as citizens of this great country, do make a difference through our vote, but, we must vote. That’s where the course of the White House and Congress, and, yes, the Supreme Court, begins.

It was our nation’s Birthday Party, a momentous occasion, to be sure, but, for me, in 2015, it was just as importantly, or possibly, more so, the weekend I spent quality time with my son. We, he and I, always spend as many valuable moments as we can with each other, and sharing the 4th of July, Independence Day, jubilant fireworks-watching extravaganza, together, made that weekend even more enjoyable and meaningful.

My middle-aged son was almost born on the 4th of July over four and a half decades ago. Being with him 4th of July Weekend, 2015, was a time of reflection, on not only what the United States means to me and my son, but, to the circumstances surrounding how he got to the point where he and I would enjoy the celebration together, as two adults.

As your child becomes a little older, and, they usually do, faster than we like: As you spend time with them during the 4th of July Weekend, or some other Holiday, wonder at your children who are now adults: How did they get so wise, so funny, so warm, so loving, so kind? Wonder at them as they, perhaps, become an even better person than you were or ever thought you could be.

Wonder too, as they compliment you by saying they owe all they are to you. You try to believe it; you hope that it’s true; that you loved them so, and hoped that some of what you taught them would stick, because, you loved them and wanted them to be genuinely nice, gentle, yet strong, wonderful human beings.

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