Freedom From . . . Freedom To . . .
Today I am grateful for freedom. I am also grateful for ice cream, a 4th of July tradition in my family.
Freedom. Personal freedom to speak, write, and act with much leeway. Freedom as an American citizen. Freedom from discrimination and fear of violence. None of these freedoms are absolute or perfect, but they apply for the most part. For that, I am deeply grateful. Like air to breathe and food to eat, I often take my freedom for granted.
I try to respect the personal freedom of others as I exercise my own. I try to be a good citizen and do my part to contribute, especially to my local community. I could do better in both areas though. Pausing to appreciate freedom on this, our nation's birthday, is a small start.
When I want to run an errand, I get in my car, drive down relatively safe streets, go about my business free of threats and prejudice, then come back home. My thoughts and prayers go out to those living in places where even venturing outdoors can carry high risks, where running an errand might put them in the path of a suicide bomber or other violence.
I, we, all of us living in freedom today owe a large debt of gratitude to those who worked for it, fought for it, died for it, continue to work, fight, and die for it. But we all have a part in preserving and extending freedom. If we want to maintain freedom from . . . we need to exercise freedom to . . .
How would you complete those lines? What can you do today?
Have a happy and safe 4th of July!
Freedom. Personal freedom to speak, write, and act with much leeway. Freedom as an American citizen. Freedom from discrimination and fear of violence. None of these freedoms are absolute or perfect, but they apply for the most part. For that, I am deeply grateful. Like air to breathe and food to eat, I often take my freedom for granted.
I try to respect the personal freedom of others as I exercise my own. I try to be a good citizen and do my part to contribute, especially to my local community. I could do better in both areas though. Pausing to appreciate freedom on this, our nation's birthday, is a small start.
When I want to run an errand, I get in my car, drive down relatively safe streets, go about my business free of threats and prejudice, then come back home. My thoughts and prayers go out to those living in places where even venturing outdoors can carry high risks, where running an errand might put them in the path of a suicide bomber or other violence.
I, we, all of us living in freedom today owe a large debt of gratitude to those who worked for it, fought for it, died for it, continue to work, fight, and die for it. But we all have a part in preserving and extending freedom. If we want to maintain freedom from . . . we need to exercise freedom to . . .
How would you complete those lines? What can you do today?
Have a happy and safe 4th of July!
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