Wednesday, July 4, 2012

Thoughts On Independence Day

United States Flag, Gene Sasse photographer

"Let us raise a standard to which the wise and honest can repair; the rest is in the hands of God."
~ George Washington



California Capitol. Gene Sasse photographer
"A house divided against itself cannot stand. I believe this government cannot endure, permanently, half slave and half free. I do not expect the Union to be dissolved — I do not expect the house to fall — but I do expect it will cease to be divided. It will become all one thing or all the other. Either the opponents of slavery will arrest the further spread of it, and place it where the public mind shall rest in the belief that it is in the course of ultimate extinction; or its advocates will push it forward, till it shall become alike lawful in all the States, old as well as new — North as well as South."  
~ Abraham Lincoln

Colorado Springs, Garden of the Gods 
“Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure, than to take rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because they live in the gray twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat.” 
 Theodore Roosevelt, Strenuous Life

Native Colorado scrub brush
Some of the greatest serenity I have known has been on horseback. As a young girl, my Uncle Frank would lift us nieces up onto his horse to watch the fireworks go off at nearby Disneyland. The 4th of July- it is the one day in the calendar I don't think my father ever drank to excess on.  The date bordered on sacred in our family. 

 With the devastation in Colorado Springs, I am glad I have these memories recorded from a ride through The Garden of The Gods Park. Due to the wildfires, it is currently closed. 

Pikes Peak- the inspiration for Katharine Lee Bates "America the Beautiful"
My husband was assigned to Colorado Springs for 30 days, which turned into 13 months. It was in the Holiday Inn there that he learned to inlay wood- it gave him something to do more interesting than just get up, go to work, dinner and TV. Towards the end of his stay, rather than have him bring his laundry home for 4 days, the company authorized my visiting him there. 

What I remember most about Colorado is clean unspoiled air. I think it is safe to say that this nation is united in praying for the environment the state is rightly renowned for quickly heals. 

Whatever our differences politically, in the contentious months that bare down prior to every election like the sun on the Mojave Desert, it is my prayer that our collective nation   comes to again remember  that people are more than their politics. 

6 comments:

  1. Great pictures. Good thoughts. Goose Gossage (birthday tomorrow) is a resident of Colorado Springs and works with athletics and kids there. Happy 4th L and G!! Enjoy your barbecue. xo

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  2. Thanks Sue.

    I wonder if Goose still has that mustache?!

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  3. It is good to remember what "The Elders" said....I pray that we, as a people, can become more unified in what is truly important...!
    HAPPY 4th, MY DEAR LYDIA.

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  4. Dear Naomi, Thank you for dropping by. I do believe we are as a people in concurrence on what is important. Unfortunately we have been caught in an era where we aren't focused on priorities. Some of the sorting out will be tough- but we can do it.

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  5. I enjoyed your thoughts.
    But an aside -- your horses didn't spook when the fireworks went off?

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  6. Hi, Joan. The horses were fine- imagine they got used to hearing some fireworks going off almost every night of the year where they lived. We did not leave their corral, or it might have been different.

    What really surprises me is we have never had a problem with either gunshot or fireworks with any dog we've ever owned.

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