Us Americans?
We aren’t perfect. We’re far from it.
But we strive.
There’s so much beauty in the fabric of our nation, in the ideals that we try to uphold. Sometimes it requires patience, sometimes it requires pushing… but slowly, steadily, we move forward and make progress.
We’re all a part of making the ideals of this country a reality.
Lately, there have been a lot of discussions about things like race and sexuality. Things have been brought to the surface that are painful, that are tainted, that are polarizing. And some people see it as things falling apart and some people see it as discouraging. But I see it as encouraging. We’re talking about things instead of avoiding them or pretending like they don’t exist — and that’s how growth begins.
Growth happens when we face the issues. When we talk about them. When we try to understand each other more than we try to be “right.”
And sometimes I look around and I think: “It’s happening. It’s really happening.” So many times, we look at how we still have so far to go. We think: “Not yet, we’re not even close.” And I get that.
But I think sometimes — and especially on a day like today — we need to praise how far we’ve come and celebrate it.
I celebrate the fact that I feel that I can do and be anything! And I am happy that we’re on the way to giving all humans equal protection under the law, regardless of creed or color or sex or orientation — regardless of anything. That we’re getting closer to letting people live in peace, to letting them live freely and trusting that they can make their own decisions. We’re on our way to stepping outside of our personal judgments and seeing that everyone deserves the right to the pursuit of happiness.
We’re a young nation and we still have a lot to learn. We can be cocky, we can be self-centered, and we can be superficial. But at the end of the day, I truly believe that most of us want what the constitution guarantees us: equality and liberty.
So on today, the fourth of July, I say: I am not only proud to be an American, but I am glad to be an American.
Happy Independence Day!