Memorial Day

Today's post could only have been about one thing. As I understand it, Americans have a global reputation for being greedy, slovenly, bloodthirsty, arrogant, ignorant, pretentious--the list goes on and on. And that is a pity. I have a hunch that the majority of the people who hold that opinion of our people have never been to America, or if they have, have never made it out of a major city. Or perhaps they've never met an American; or if they have, they've only met the poorest examples of Americans. So seeing these examples and saying what they do would be rather like me reading one article about a French person and calling the whole country drunken and debauched. It isn't true. I've not been to France, but it seems like it would be a lovely country with wonderful traditions, and I'd love to have the opportunity to see it someday. But this country I know a little something about. And I've met many examples of greed, and laziness, and arrogance. But I've met far more people who are generous. Helpful. Humble. Innovative. Intelligent. Open-minded. I've seen volunteers who feed the hungry on a regular basis, because it's the right thing to do. Many of my friends speak at least three languages. (Personally, I will confess that I am no longer fluent in Spanish, and I speak just barely enough Japanese to get myself into trouble.) As a student at a STEM-focused university, I met extremely intelligent students with invention ideas that, should they come to fruition, will change the world. American researchers have made great inroads into scientific discoveries. I wish the world could see these examples. I'm not sure when opinions about America and her citizens took such a hard left turn, but it pains me to see it, because I love this country. We are ultimately blessed to have things like clean water, access to fresh food, the right to voice our opinions, choose our own church, go where we want whenever we want...the list, again, goes on and on. And a large number of these things we would not have today were it not for the bravery of our soldiers who have fought to keep our land safe. Starting today, I renew my promise to not take these things for granted.