July 4, 2026
The 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence should feel like a patriotic moment. It marks the birth of America, that country of hope and promise for so many who dreamed of a better life. They came to its shores to escape the hardships of their homeland whether it be poverty, hunger or oppression. These immigrants included my grandparents and great grandparents and probably yours too. They came from disparate places and brought with them different views and beliefs. They put down their feet and put their differences aside as they set to the task of making this new country their own. They felled the trees and fished the seas. They worked the farm land in bone chilling cold, and they endured the stifling heat in the many factories that dotted the land. They left their loved ones on distant shores to find a new life in this land of hopes and dreams, and that new country said yes, we will take you in and we will allow you to prosper.
Yes, this holiday deserves to be celebrated, but there are a lot of other feelings that linger alongside those feelings of hope and pride. I don’t think I need to dwell on that here as they are probably well defined in your own heart too. I grew up in a family of six children. When my mother made a pie, her first task was to divide it so everyone got a fair portion. She would never dream of taking the biggest and best portion for herself and leave us kids to scramble for the remainders. Yet, that is our country today. A billion here and a billion there. Here a billion… there a billion… everywhere a billion… if you happen to be in the right place or wrong place depending on how you look at. And we, the people, are left with something that does not feel like a fair share. That was never a way to run a household, and it is not a way to run a country either.
America is a place of such potential, but it seems we have squandered all of that lately. We were built upon a brilliant set of ideals conceived by our founders and practiced by the millions that followed. Our constitution was like a shrine. E Pluribus Unum. The great American story. It was by no means perfect, but we always believed that we were on the path to a more perfect union, one that could learn from the lessons of the past and strive to be better.
Now, we have become a tarnished version of that image rather than a place that shines as an example for others. My friend tells the story of her grandmother who was put on a boat headed towards America with a piece of salt pork in one pocket and a crust of bread in the other. It seems like a fable, but it is the true story of so many immigrants that were able to make that journey. There was plenty of opportunity for all. Now a great cloud of greed has engulfed our country. It has obscured the path ahead and tricks us into believing what is wrong is right and what is dark is light. We must remember our history and the stories that have helped make us who we are today. We are individuals yes, but no one every excelled by the power of their own sheer will. We are part of a greater whole. The great American experiment. The United States. It was once called a dream. We must each believe in the power of hope, and we must continue to give hope to others to keep this dream alive.
