America
“This nation has no mission of mediocrity. We were never meant to be second best. The spirit that built our country was bold, not timid. It was a spirit of pride, confidence, and courage that we could do anything.” Ronald Reagan
We watched the opening ceremonies of the Olympics last night for family time. It was an awesome opportunity to share a moment in history with our children and to relive the first Olympics that we remembered as kids. It also opened conversation about different countries and governments and how things in other parts of the world are not like America. Our children were flabbergasted to know that in China you are only allowed to have one child. They have heard about this and have heard me talk incessently about all of the freedoms that we have, but last night it all sunk in.
When I was only a little older than our middle child, I went to Communist East Germany with my mom. I left behind the Rocky movies, my MTV, Atari, and the beaches of Daytona to see my aunt who lived on the other side of the wall. When we flew into West Berlin I could sense my mom's anxiety. She had escaped through the wall she would now cross back over through a checkpoint. We went into the checkpoint area with our travel Visas and made it to the Eastern side with little trouble. When we stepped into the Eastern side it was like walking into a coloring book without color. Everything was grey, everyone looked washed out. For a ten year old girl leaving behind the freedoms of America, this was an eye opening experience.
Last night we talked about the differences between a democracy and a communist state. I told my children about my experience that summer and how things were vastly different from our country. After comparing the two types of governments, our daughter proclaimed, "There isn't much wrong with our country is there Mom?"
There isn't much wrong with our country. We are afforded incredible freedoms that other people can only dream about. If I'm not happy with our government, I can speak my mind and have my opinion without worry of persecution. If I chose to have a family with three beautiful children as opposed to one, I don't have to ask permission but only to count my blessings. If I want to go to college, I don't have to have the blessing of a teacher or the markings of a genius, I simply have to strive to do my best. As a woman I have the right to vote for our elected officials, the right to make an educated decision about who will lead the country that means so much to me and my children's children. This country is not lead by a ruling class, but by the people for the people.
Indeed, there isn't much wrong with this country.
In fact, there is a whole lot right with my country.
We watched the opening ceremonies of the Olympics last night for family time. It was an awesome opportunity to share a moment in history with our children and to relive the first Olympics that we remembered as kids. It also opened conversation about different countries and governments and how things in other parts of the world are not like America. Our children were flabbergasted to know that in China you are only allowed to have one child. They have heard about this and have heard me talk incessently about all of the freedoms that we have, but last night it all sunk in.
When I was only a little older than our middle child, I went to Communist East Germany with my mom. I left behind the Rocky movies, my MTV, Atari, and the beaches of Daytona to see my aunt who lived on the other side of the wall. When we flew into West Berlin I could sense my mom's anxiety. She had escaped through the wall she would now cross back over through a checkpoint. We went into the checkpoint area with our travel Visas and made it to the Eastern side with little trouble. When we stepped into the Eastern side it was like walking into a coloring book without color. Everything was grey, everyone looked washed out. For a ten year old girl leaving behind the freedoms of America, this was an eye opening experience.
Last night we talked about the differences between a democracy and a communist state. I told my children about my experience that summer and how things were vastly different from our country. After comparing the two types of governments, our daughter proclaimed, "There isn't much wrong with our country is there Mom?"
There isn't much wrong with our country. We are afforded incredible freedoms that other people can only dream about. If I'm not happy with our government, I can speak my mind and have my opinion without worry of persecution. If I chose to have a family with three beautiful children as opposed to one, I don't have to ask permission but only to count my blessings. If I want to go to college, I don't have to have the blessing of a teacher or the markings of a genius, I simply have to strive to do my best. As a woman I have the right to vote for our elected officials, the right to make an educated decision about who will lead the country that means so much to me and my children's children. This country is not lead by a ruling class, but by the people for the people.
Indeed, there isn't much wrong with this country.
In fact, there is a whole lot right with my country.
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