July 4th: A Day of Reflection

mood: contemplative
pandora/ipod: tour de france on vs.

I'm not particularly introspective. No one is ever going to accuse me of being too "in my head" or of spending too much time analyzing the inner workings of my brain.

But certain days - Thanksgiving, July 4th, Christmas Day - make me think about how lucky I am in life, how many opportunities I have, how many luxuries I enjoy. I was lucky enough to have been born in a prosperous country, in an open-minded city, to a parent who encouraged me to "do anything." So on this Fourth of July, I'd like to take a moment to thank this country for the little, wondrous things it's given to me.

Thanks America! For offering me a homeland free from genocide, tyranny and oppression. Where I don't have to worry if I'll live through the day or have my loved ones disappear in the night, never to be heard from again.

Thanks America! For a country where we can all speak our mind without fear of reprisal. I don't always agree with what everyone else says, but the fact that we can say it without getting arrested, tortured, executed, etc. is one hell of a thing.

Thanks America! For being a place where anyone can "make it." Where a girl can come from nothing and make something of herself. Where careers can be changed, lives reinvented, milestones achieved. Here in Los Angeles, I feel like that "Go West, young man" mentality is still as alive as ever. You can be anything here. I'm total proof of that!

Thanks America! For the people who give back to our society in ways I sometimes can't even imagine. It's not just the police officers, firemen/women and military personnel that keep us safe in our daily lives, but soup kitchen volunteers, people who work a full day and then go help out at a shelter teaching computer skills to those trying to get back on their feet, folks who tutor kids in halfway houses or read books terminally ill children. That spirit of giving back, of being responsible for the well-being of those around you - it's not intrinsically American, but I do think one of the reasons our country is so wonderful is because of this mentality.

Thanks America! For the frivolous things I love so much: a frilly blouse at Anthropologie, specialty cupcake stores, zebra print red stilettos, dark cherry mocha lattes (hold the whipped cream), entire TV series on DVD, special bottle stoppers just for champagne, lava lamps, the fluffy white dog sleeping on my feet. Examples of Western Decadence? Perhaps. I'd like to attribute our ability to enjoy such decadence as a result of points 1-4 above. :)

I won't get weepy on you. But on this Independence Day, we should all remember how wonderful this country is, and how damn lucky we are to live here.

/bizarre swell of patriotism