Fourth
Of July Celebrate the America’s
birthday by hanging the flag outside of your home, and create a special
wreath for your door...or voting for democracy
50
Ways to Stand Up for America: Put the Spirit of July 4th into Everyday
Life by W. B. Freemen is a straightforward, patriotic,
highly portable guide brimming with suggestions on practical, applicable,
appropriate ways to embrace American spirit, ranging from learning how
to treat the flag with respect and proudly display it according to etiquette,
to hosting an exchange student, to supporting your local schools, or just
being kind to one's neighbors.
US
Flag - 4' x 6' This fabric has been specially designed
for the industrial user who requires a flag with long wearing properties.
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Citizens
Of The Land Of Opportunity (For July 4!) by: Rebecca Fine
"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."
--The Declaration of
Independence, July 4, 1776
In a crowded, airless room in the city
of Philadelphia 227 years ago this week, a group of men solemnly stepped
forward, one by one, and affixed their names to a single sheet of paper
-- each man knowing that if they faltered in their collective vision, purpose,
commitment, or action, he had just signed his own death warrant. Yet before
they were done, a total of 56 men had signed.
They knew what they wanted: They
had a dream, a vision, a goal.
They knew why they wanted it: They
had a purpose.
They knew the price and were willing
to pay it: They were committed.
They had a plan: They took action.
And they set in motion a never before
imagined and still imperfect and incomplete chain of events that continues
to this day toward the ever-expanding vision of freedom and justice for
all.
They triumphed, and yet their ultimate
success remains to be realized. Its completion is a legacy handed down
through the generations, to us and through us, and on to those who follow.
This week as we celebrate their vision,
purpose, commitment, and action (and as we also honor the succeeding generations
who have kept the faith and improved on the dream), consider that it is
largely because of their vision, purpose, commitment, and action that you
are today a citizen of the Land of Opportunity.
You and I are the recipients of many
precious gifts bought by others. Whatever our situations and backgrounds,
we enjoy a freedom still only dreamed of in many parts of the world.
But in the midst of the familiar
words of the Declaration of Independence, there's another phrase that goes
mostly unnoticed. Thomas Jefferson wrote:
"[A]ll experience hath shewn that
mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to
right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed."
It's another way of saying that, sadly,
most people simply aren't motivated enough to do anything to change the
status quo -- even if it's awful, even if they despise it, even if it's
slowly killing them. It's another way of saying the "comfort zone" rules.
Because freedom and opportunity are
our day-to-day reality, we often take them for granted in a way that people
in many parts of the world find astounding, even unthinkable. We keep ourselves
ignorant of the true value and meaning of these gifts. And we too often
waste them by not clearly seeing how precious they are and ACTING upon
that -- by not reaching out and taking hold of the opportunity that surrounds
us and is part of the very air we breathe. The opportunity for life itself
-- more life, better life, life under no one's thumb.
As citizens of the Land of Opportunity,
though, we have a sacred responsibility NOT to waste what's been given
to us, bought with the blood and sweat of those who went before and longed
for by millions around the world. We have a responsibility to lay hold
of that limitless opportunity, burst out of our stifling "comfort zones,"
and make the most of our freedom -- to be, do, and have all we need for
all the life we are capable of living.
We have an obligation to create our
own success and the opportunity to help others do the same and to weave
ALL our individual successes into the glorious, unfinished tapestry of
this country's past, present, and future.
As with the signers of the Declaration
and all the heroic men and women who have carried the torch, it all begins
with a dream. A vision. A goal.
Just yesterday a very wise person
told me, "If you don't have a dream and a goal that you're actively working
toward, you are trading your life for nothing."
Think of the signers or of any great
achiever in any field of endeavor in any country -- anyone you admire,
anyone who is successful. What do they all have in common besides dreams,
vision, goals, purpose? They all have something called discipline, a word
that immediately frightens or repels many (perhaps most) people because
when they see or hear it, they think "punishment," "deprivation."
They resist the notion of self-discipline
because they think it constricts them; they prefer no rules, no plans --
just "freedom." Ironically, though, that kind of "freedom" is simply the
right to remain in the "comfort zone" where mediocrity is king. And discipline
is the key that unlocks those chains.
What discipline really means is simply
this: The ability to give yourself a command and then do it -- "to see
the job through."
First you need a plan (command),
then action (follow-through). To do that, you need something that's bigger
than yourself to motivate you -- your dream, vision, goal, and your purpose.
True COMMITMENT to those things, then, means taking ACTION consistently,
daily: Giving yourself a command and following through. And to follow through
is a definition of the word, "succeed."
Without this commitment born of your
own innermost desires, dreams and goals remain empty wishes. Vision becomes
a pathetic pipedream. And purpose? There is none.
You already have within you everything
you need to achieve everything you truly want. You are more powerful than
you can imagine. But only you can take the action to set that power --
and yourself -- free.
What do YOU want for your life --
for yourself, your loved ones, your community, country, world? What's your
DREAM, VISION, GOAL?
Why do you want those things? What's
your PURPOSE?
What price are you willing to pay?
Are you COMMITTED?
Do you have a plan? Are you taking
ACTION -- DAILY action in following through on your commitment to your
own vision and purpose?
We're at the halfway point of the
year. We're at the time when we celebrate and commemorate one of the world's
great acts of vision, purpose and commitment.
We are at the moment of decision,
and you are next in line, facing YOUR choice: Submit to the chains of mediocrity
and a lifetime of settling for less than you are capable of being, doing,
and having -- or claim your power, break free of the insidious oppression
of the "comfort zone," and declare your own independence and right to life,
liberty, and the pursuit of happiness as YOU define it.
Celebrate the Nation’s birthday by
hanging the flag outside of your home, and create a special wreath for
your door. This is an easy craft that you can complete in an afternoon
– and it can be a good craft for children (supervision with the glue gun
may be necessary).
You will need:
a wreath - grapevine or other style
of your choice
9 wooden stars
red, white and blue acrylic paint
red, white and blue ribbon – about 2
inches wide and at least 3 yards of each color
red, white and blue paint pens (optional)
paintbrush
a glue gun with glue sticks
small American flag
Begin by painting your wooden stars.
Paint 3 wooden stars red, 3 blue and 3 white. Allow these to dry.
You will braid your red, white and
blue ribbon through the wreath and then tie it with a bow at the bottom.
Braid all of the colors through the wreath and then tie the bow using all
three of the colors.
Now arrange your stars on your wreath.
Glue three stars at the top, close together. The others glue at about the
four o’clock and eight o’clock space on your wreath. Space the stars to
your liking. You may also want to arrange them so that the stars are glued
in order – so that each bunch begins with the red star, has the white star
in the middle and ends with the blue star. Or you may want it to be more
casual, its up to you. It is fine to glue the stars to ribbon if that is
the best placement, just be sure to add extra glue and glue the star also
to the wreath to be sure that the star stays firm on the wreath.
With your paint pens – you will write
“God Bless America” on the top stars. Use the white pen on the red star,
the blue pen on the white star and the red pen on the blue star. Allow
the words to dry before you hang the wreath.
Hang the American flag so that it
hangs in the center of your wreath. Glue the stem of the American flag
so that it stays, probably you will glue it to the side of the wreath.
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