Today is one of my favorite holidays, because it's about the ideals this country was founded on. Not the nation as it is, fallen short of those ideals, but the nation as it could and should be. The Great American Melting Pot. The American Dream. Also, we get to pig out and blow things up.
I've got friends and family all over the political and religious spectrums. Among us, Republicans sit down with Democrats and Independents and even those who choose not to vote at all. The religious grab a drink for the atheist. We focus on what we have in common instead of the differences. Which is exactly what one of the aforementioned ideals is.
I've could go on and on about how Americans have failed The Founders, but not today. Today is about what we can be if we chose to be. Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. E Pluribus Unum. We The People. All that jazz.
Let's not dwell on negativity. It's on us to protect and nurture that more perfect union that The Founders and countless others since have fought and even died for. A place where people of diverse cultures can break bread and laugh together. Have your junk food and your boom-booms. Embrace (literally or otherwise) someone the nay-sayers call your enemy.
America's turned out to be more a stew than a melt, but when was the last time you saw a potato duking it out with a carrot? Or even a hunk of meat? Hmmm.... maybe we're a Mixing Pot instead of a Melting Pot?
Anyway.... Enjoy the holiday. I intend to.
