USA

Today is Labor Day, and I just want to say, “THANK YOU!”

Thank you for your time. Thank you for your service. Thank you for all you do to make this country, and the world in which we live, a better place.

You are the truck drivers who carry my food across country for the groceries. You are the warehouse workers who stack and box the clothes for the retailers.

You are the teachers in our schools who give so much, and often, receive little in return. You are the cashiers who run up my items at Walmart, Target, Kroger and Sam’s.

You are the CEO’s, the lawyers, the bankers and the accountants who work with the big numbers and the long hours to supply the goods, protect the laws and assign the funds.

You are the policemen on patrol who help to protect my babies as I drive on the road. You are the firemen who are on call to put out a fire or pull a cat from a tree. You are the ambulance and EMTs who come at a moment’s notice.

You are the dentist who cleans my teeth and the doctor who checks my sons’ ears. You are the quick care nurse who receives my name and checks for insurance.

You are the SAHM mom who saves on your daycare bill and decides to skip on the coffee trips; so, dad doesn’t have to work those extra hours this week.

You are the state park worker who works at the visitor center; so, I can get more information and find my way to that beautiful waterfall.

You are the amusement park worker who makes sure my son is buckled in tight for his thrill ride. You are the bowling alley waitress who brings me a coke and helps to make the party a success.

You are the restaurant hostess who finds my husband and I a quiet booth, and you are the parking lot security who makes sure my car is safe.

You are the pastor who prays for me and the youth pastor who teaches my son to pray. You are the maintenance man who cleans the toilets and mows the lawn to make our church look better.

There are so many who make this world go round and who work hard to make everyday a little better for the rest of us, and I just want to take time today to tell you…

WE APPRECIATE YOU!!

Happy Labor Day!

Today, I would like to give my tribute to America. Yes, the land of the free and the home of the brave. I love my home, America.

There are many in this world who would scoff at those words, many who would sneer at my homeland, believing they would be better off without it. Yet, for those who long for freedom, those held under tight regimental control, where do their hearts long to go? Where do their dreams take them when they think of freedom? Yes, it is AMERICA! This land was chosen to be a place where “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”* This is the land of the free and the brave. This country was founded on freedom, on liberty and on the pursuit of happiness. For those who live in this land and get angry at these words, I truly wonder why they still live here! Why stay in a country that you so clearly hate? However, I digress. This post today is not meant to be a rant. It is meant to be a tribute; so, let me pay honor where honor is due! 😉

I LOVE this land of freedom! I can worship freely. I can go where I please. I can do as I please (within the laws of reason). I can choose to pursue whatever course in life I’d like. I can be whomever I choose to be. If I want to be a doctor, a lawyer, a teacher, a construction worker, a CEO, a fireman, a retail salesperson, or even a fast food worker, I can be any of these. If I want to pursue a life long dream of singing or a momentary whim of sailing across the ocean, I can do it. The only things that will stop me is my own limitations of dreaming and my own will power to pursue those dreams. This is the beauty of freedom.

Yes, I know we’ve got our problems. I’m not blind. I know there’s people who don’t appreciate this land nor the people who work hard to make it what it is, but that’s not my point today. Sometimes, you’ve got to step out of the darkness to truly see the light again. Often, we must re-shift our focus when there’s so much turmoil and remember the reason we got in this to begin with. This country was founded for freedom. This country was founded on hard work and pride in a nation of diversity and respect for the pursuit of a dream. These are the things upon which this country was built. Let’s get back to the main thing! Sometimes, I wonder if we’ve forgotten the goodness and wonder in the dream of a better future, because we’ve gotten so entangled in the futuristic dream someone else said we should have… (another thought for another day!)

I LOVE this land of beauty! There is an “old” song, sung by Lee Greenwood, that perfectly sums up my love for the beautiful land called America. He says, “From the lakes of Minnesota, To the hills of Tennessee, Across the plains of Texas, From sea to shining sea, From Detroit down to Houston, And New York to L.A., Where’s pride in every American heart, And it’s time we stand and say, God Bless the USA!” The beauty of this land is as diverse as the people who live here. If you long for snow, just travel north long enough, and you’ll find it. If the beach is more your style, just travel South, you’ll find it. Maybe green rolling “hills” (this term is relative to what you call a hill or a mountain) and Shenandoah Valleys are more your speed, or maybe you prefer peaks as high as the clouds, and tree as big as a house or maybe it’s beautiful plains that stretch for as far as the eye can see. Well, we’ve got it all, just find a map and start your travels! America is where it’s at! No matter, if you’re looking for the city and the night life or the ranch and the country life. It’s all here in this great big land of opportunity!

So, today, I call myself BLESSED to be an American, and I consider myself blessed to be living here in this wonderful land of the free! These are just a few reasons I love this wonderful place! There’s nowhere else I’d rather be. Who’s with me?? 🙂

*Declaration of Independence (found here)