Happy Birthday America!

On this 4^th of July weekend I am grateful to celebrate the birth of my beloved country. With all its flaws and shortcomings, it is still the “Home of the Free and the Brave.” Nearly every other day of the year we take for granted the freedoms and rights that we have available to us simply by virtue of being born a United States citizen. I have the right to vote, to speak out in dissent, to a free education, to a fair trial and representation, to choose my religion or to have none and most importantly the right to choose my path, my career and where I live.

I step outside my door and send my children off to school without fear of roadside bombings. My daughters have the same options and choices as my sons. I am not my husband’s property; in fact I own property and have my own money. We do not live in some utopia or Garden of Eden. There are problems to be sure; major ones that must be addressed. But I sleep peacefully at night comfortable in my safety and wake each morning knowing that I am FREE and it is a beautiful thing indeed.

While you are celebrating this holiday and enjoying parades, picnics and fireworks, please for a moment stop and think about those men and women who for 234 years have guaranteed you’re your right to do so. Remember the 3 million service members who protect us, including the 124,000 guard and reservists who are currently deployed away from their homes and families. Many of these soldiers do not get a day off to celebrate with their family and friends. They work through their holiday and in fact many like my husband do not even get to call home. So please have fun, be safe, rejoice and be grateful.