As America turns 250, I find myself in a strange place.
I don't really feel like celebrating the ideal of what America has become. But I will always celebrate community.
When I was growing up in small town Iowa .. Every year our street threw the biggest Fourth of July party imaginable. We'd have a neighborhood parade, and my mom always outdid herself with costumes. One year I was George Washington carrying a little axe to chop a cherry tree, and a copy of the Declaration of Independence. Another year my mom made me a homemade flag shirt, and I climbed on top of a picnic table, and sang "Twist and Shout." Ferris Bueller style for the neighbors ..Years later, thanks to my friend Alli Arnold, that moment and photo became immortalized forever on the cover of one of my albums.
Then came the giant neighborhood softball game. These games were legendary. Think the 4th of July scene in the movie The Sandlot.. But with drunk adults..
Every year somebody seemed to end up in the hospital. One year my mom's best friend was airlifted after taking a softball to the face. My sister still talks about standing at the plate in the July heat, seeing the white light of heat exhaustion.. hoping she didn't pass out.
And when the sun went down, our dads... who had been drinking beer all day put on what seemed like as a kid.. an epic fireworks show.
One year a mortar tipped over. "LOOK OUT!"
The fireworks shot through the crowd and grazed one of the neighborhood kids. I still remember the screams and the panic of all the moms. But after the tears dried.. the show must go on..
I love the idea of a neighborhood that showed up for one another. Families bringing food. Kids running from yard to yard. Parents laughing until dark. A community choosing to spend a day together.
Maybe that's what I've been missing... in our current AMERICA.
So this Fourth of July, I'm celebrating the people who build community. The people who know their neighbors, share a meal, play a game, and remind us that we're at our best when we choose each other.
Just... maybe let someone sober light the fireworks.
And always keep your eye on the ball.
