Rambling this Tuesday about the National Anthem:
- Some facts today, some opinions as well. Want to let you know up front!
- Saturday I attended a junior high championship basketball game.
- Prior to the game, as at most sports events, a recording blared the Star Spangled Banner for all to hear.
- Men, women, and children rose.
- A familiar hush.
- Squirrely junior high boys turned to face the flag, hats off and hands over hearts.
- Voiced hummed, not sang along with the recorded musical arrangement.
- In those hushed moments, respect, remembering, honor.
- The Star Spangled Banner represents the freedoms enjoyed by the United States.
- It represents the cost of those freedoms.
- All these years later, it stirs. It unifies.
- Even those using the anthem to protest kind of make the point: we have the freedom to demonstrate and the anthem reminds us of our differences.
- I find the U.S. anthem one of the most stirring songs ever written. It gets me nearly every time I hear it.
- Even given our warts, I’d rather live in the U.S. than anywhere else.
- It shouldn’t take a holiday for us to express gratefulness for the freedom we have.
- The freedom comes with responsibility. I want to use it well. I hope you do too!