As little kids, we never really knew what we were
celebrating on the Fourth of July. We went to the parade hoping for the good candy to be thrown our
direction. We waved sparklers the
minute it turned dark, and if we were lucky enough, we watched fireworks that
lasted fifteen minutes. But, if
you think about it, the picnics with your family, the watermelon seed-spitting
contests, and the three-legged races with your cousins was really like a
mid-summer day off of your usual summer doldrums. I was probably nine before I recall having a vague
understanding of why we wore red, white, and blue and waved American flags on the Fourth of July.
America actually declared independence from Great Britain on
July 2, 1776. But, it wasn’t until
July 4, 1776 that the document justifying this action was ready for
publication. It appears that the
document supersedes the act in terms of which we celebrate. However, declaring independence and
actually having it were two different things. It took six more years of fighting, 25,000 Revolutionary soldier’s deaths, and 25,000 wounds before Great Britain finally agreed to let
America be independent. And, it
wasn’t until 1788 that the actual US Constitution was adopted and the new
independent government was formed.
Coincidentally, two of the founding fathers died on July 4,
1826 – 40 years after the Declaration of Independence was completed. Thomas Jefferson, our third president
and the one given credit for authoring the Declaration, died within a few hours
of our second president, John Adams. James Monroe, another signer of the Declaration and our fifth president also
died on July 4, 1831.
As flags wave on the Independence Day this year, I will
think about what our forefathers risked by declaring independence from Great
Britain and, be thankful that I was Born in America.
