Hooked on America!


Politics aside for a moment - Is this a great country or WHAT ???!??

How often do we thank God for our freedoms?
If you are like me, you skip merrily along, day after day, ignoring our predecessors and ancestors who literally gave their lives for our freedoms. We take it all for granted.
We hop in the car and run errands.
We send our kids to school.
We can pick any church we want.
We have an abundance of food choices.
We take vacations.
We go to work.
We go to the bank.
We run to the doctor and get a prescription to cure an illness.
We plant flowers for asthetic purposes.
We vote and our vote is actually counted.

Most of us were simply born into this great inheritance.

And let's not forget the beauty of the land!


We have SUCH a beautiful country! From the beautiful harbors of Maine.......



to the Rocky Mountains .........



to the coasts of Florida ............



I could go on, and on, and on, and on, and on with thousands of beautiful pictures of this country. EVERY state is beautiful and unique! One important common thread - each state is chock-full of Americans.

-Hardworking, caring people.

In our house, we have a favorite television series we record called Drive Thru History -America on the History-International channel. We watched an episode last night about Jamestown and how so many of the early settlers died from disease, indian attacks, or starvation. (And I complain when the air conditioning is not cool enough, the car needs repairs, or when someone ate the last (fill in the blank) out of the pantry).

Major Sidetrack: I am continually dismayed at the minimal amounts of American history my kids learn in public school. They may hear Sam Adams' name once, but can they tell you what he did? Can they tell you about William Bradford attempting socialism or what Patrick Henry meant? If they do not learn about why and how this country was founded, how will they EVER appreciate it --or desire to defend our freedoms?

I, personally, have benefitted from the genius behind School House Rock. One of my favorites is Shot Heard 'Round the World.


On to art ..........There is something about Norman Rockwell paintings that just scream - "AMERICA."
Here are his Four Freedoms paintings:


And To Make Men Free


And The American Way.

One last thing -- In honor of my husband, here is John Wayne's America -Why I Love Her.




Have a great 4th of July !

Participating in the Hooked on Houses and The Inspired Room blog parties.

Comments

Nancy said…
Today I stood in the library at Montpelier where James Madison wrote the Constitution. On the floor were ink stains where they think Madison knocked his inkwell to the floor.
Becky K. said…
A very wonderful post!!!!

I am glad you are teaching your children history through this excellent program. We do need to remember where we have come from to avoid having to do it again.

Have a great Fourth of July!

Becky K.
Hospitality Lane
Tee said…
Beautiful. I can't help thinking of the lady in Texas (whose family members were soldiers, I believe) who was recently made to remove the American flag from her office because a native of Africa living in the U.S. for only a few years was offended by it. She would love this post.

Hope you have a blessed Independence Day,
Tee

p.s. I loved Schoolhouse Rock too!
Terry said…
Happy Independence Day to everybody. We celebrating with a good old American cookout with friends and family.
Very nice! Great post. What a wonderful blog you have. I enjoyed it very much. Have a wonderful 4th weekend :)))
Debbie
Anonymous said…
Great post! Thanks for not letting us forget John Wayne also!
Jasmine said…
Love those pictures you had of Maine, Rocky Mountains and Florida; it truly makes me appreciate it, even though I live in Australia.

But it's so true - there's so much beauty out there to appreciate and be thankful for.

Enjoy your weekend! :-)
Holly Campbell said…
Beautifully said! It is truly a blessing to be living in this country!
I am proud to be an American, with a brother representing our country in Iraq right now (his 4th tour of duty there - he is a senior officer). I loved reading this post!
ImagineCozy said…
Thank you for the beautiful reminder. We have a lot to be grateful for and a lot to stand up and fight for.