As you celebrate July 4th tomorrow, take a moment sometime during the day and be grateful that your ancestors thought it was worth risking death to become an American. Be grateful that in 1776 there were men willing to sacrifice everything to be free from the tyranny of Great Britain.
One of my ancestors, Major John McConnell, came close to being hanged for treason by the British. I wrote about him here.
The men who signed the Declaration of Independence risked EVERYTHING for a concept. The idea of people ruling themselves was unheard-of at that time. It was considered bizarre and radical and dangerous. It had never been done before.If the colonists had lost the war, those men would have been hanged for treason. During the course of the Revolutionary War many of the signers endured hardships like the loss of homes, and the deaths of family members. (for more, see here.)
Great Britain was a powerful nation. Their soldiers were highly skilled, well-trained. When Great Britain claimed a country as its own, they were usually met with little or no resistance.
Our troops didn't have great food or supplies. When I visited Valley Forge PA some years ago and went to the museum in the Visitors Center I was fascinated and saddened to see what our men went through. Illness killed many men. They were starving some of the time. They didn't always get paid. The sacrifices made by those men and their families were enormous and terrible.
But they thought it was worth it, to be free.
It makes me sad to know that our country is deeply divided right now. But think about this: we can have differences of opinion without killing each other. We can take to the streets in protest. We can observe patriotic displays or not. We can choose what to do tomorrow.
We have choices, and we have information. Elsewhere in the world that isn't true.People in China who didn't quarantine during Covid were taken from their homes and beaten, and they didn't care what the world thought. (LINK) That's what it looks like to live in an oppressive society where the individual is not free. People in North Korea live at the mercy of a dictator and they don't even know about the outside world. People in Russia are being told the war in Ukraine is the result of fascism in Ukraine.
When I sing the national anthem I don't think about how America is today a troubled place. I take the long view, and think about the sacrifices made by those who have fought and died in every war since the American Revolution. Three of my four uncles risked death in WWII. My grandfather Thompson fought in France in World War I. My brother went to Iraq but he came home. Other families were not so lucky.
Despite the divisions and the issues I still think America is the greatest country on earth and I am proud to be American. God Bless our great nation!
