Where Liberty Dwells

“Happy 4th of July!”

I have heard it a million times today and I’ve said it quite a few times myself, but I didn’t really start thinking about the phrase until the day was almost over. Why do we say “4th of July?” Perhaps it’s merely because “4th of July” is a syllable shorter than “Independence Day” and it’s quite a bit easier to spell. When I think about it, though, the phrase is something of a disappointment because it completely disregards the meaning of the holiday.

I did one of those things where you think for a long time (uh-oh), and I realized that Independence Day is such an important event. I’ve never been very patriotic, honestly. But today I understand exactly what a blessing it is to be an American (for all of my non-American readers, I love you all and I hope you have awesome rights).

Do not forget why America became America.

Independence Day is about freedom! I mean, of course we’re not paying outrageous taxes to any sort of European king because this is America (our very own independent country), and that’s all well and good. But I think it’s about more than that. Way back when there were pilgrims and stuff, we left Europe because we wanted to make our own decisions and form our own beliefs. (You’re probably like “Duh…”) Think about it though! There are so many things that we can be doing that we simply are not doing. Here are the three main ones I’ve been thinking about:

1. We can believe whatever we want to. There will be people who say that what you believe is stupid or wrong, and who cares? You get to believe what you want without being put into jail for it. If you want to go to church, you can do so. If you want to pray, you can do that whenever or wherever you want. You can carry a Bible or whatever book it is that you want to read from. You can take a stand for/against abortion and you can take a stand for/against video games or whatever it is. Nobody is stopping you, because this is America… If we have this amazing right, why do we so seldom take advantage of it? I mean, I see so many people choosing to believe what their friends/teachers/parents tell them they should. And I do it too!!! When I think of Independence Day, I realize how important it is to open our eyes and look at what’s true and right. We cannot rely only on what people tell us- we have to learn things for ourselves and make a decision. Not everyone has this right. Let’s use it.

2. We can say anything we want to! I’m not talking about screaming profanities at the top of our lungs. No. I mean that we are allowed to express what we believe and why. When was the last time you sat in a room full of people who disagreed with you, and you still spoke your true thoughts? I admire people who are like that. I myself know that if everyone disagrees with me, I keep my mouth shut unless it’s something I’m passionate about. It happens every day! We’re afraid of what people will think of us, we want people to like us, so we keep our mouths shut about what we believe! Most of us don’t want to be bullied for what we stand for- so we take no stand. Today I realize that there is no point in believing something if you don’t say something about it. I can tell people that I am pro-life, and they can’t do anything to change that. But it will not matter that I’m pro-life unless I make it known- unless I tell the world why I disagree with abortion. I can stand for anything I want to, so maybe it’s time to do so.

3. We can do what we love. We can bake, we can sing, we can write, we can paint, we can become lawyers. It takes hard work, yes. Some of us will have to conquer some extreme financial barriers, yes. But we all have a chance to work hard so that we can do what we love. We’re not necessarily stuck doing the same thing our parents did or whatever. Let’s work hard to do what we love to do and be who we love to be.

So, anyways, I’m so thankful for all of these rights that we have in America. They absolutely don’t come for free. There are people out there fighting for us right now. They are fighting, not only for what they believe in, but so that we can believe what we want to. To those of you who fight for us- thank you.

To all the others- there are other ways we can fight for our freedom. I can think of two good ones: 1. Use your freedom. America is obviously becoming less okay with different beliefs, and this will continue if we let people mold us into what they want. We have to be independent individuals in order to have an independent nation. 2. Don’t break down people who have different beliefs than you. Of course we are all going to disagree. Does that mean I can’t be friends with someone who is pro-choice? Of course not. We listen to what people say so that they can use their freedom and we can use ours. We’re all different, but let’s stop being jerks about it. I mean, let’s grow up here and stop getting offended by everyone who disagrees.

So you have my two cents. This is important stuff guys. We have freedom that we don’t use. Let’s start using it in a way that is radical. Happy Independence Day!

-Kennedy

“The most courageous act is to think for yourself. Aloud.” –Coco Chanel