CLICK HERE & LISTEN ON APPLE ITUNES
*Sign Up for Weekly Updates HERE!
Did you forget? Don’t worry, I did too. But I am not going to forget anymore. And I hope, more than anything, that you too will never again forget what I am about to share. I hope that both of us will never again forget this one important piece of our life that we are so lucky to have in common.
But let me take you back first. I want to tell you about how I suddenly remembered what I had long ago forgotten about in my life… in all of our lives.
It all started with London, the spring break trip my family and I took a couple of months back. With all of the different Covid restrictions and difficulties traveling, this was actually a last-minute decision for us. We knew we wanted to travel abroad but ideas of Paris and Italy swarmed our minds…not England. However, as the months brought us closer and closer to spring break, all signs seemed to point to the London. So London it was!
And I just have to say…this ended up being a trip like no other! We were constantly on the move. Bouncing around from one tour to the next and learning all about the history and culture of the United Kingdom. It was fascinating to see such old building dating back to over 2,000 years ago. It was incredible to learn about the Monarchy’s history and the current royal family. It was so neat to see how Britain ran its government, or parliament, in their case. And mostly, it was astonishing to learn how all of the decisions and choices made by the women and men before us have ultimately impacted the world we see today.
And the biggest decision of those? It was made by many brave souls back in 1776 who fought for their rights and chose to break away from the United Kingdom to form their own great nation. They had this idea of freedom, of elected officials, and of a place where “the people” would have more say in their country. And they could have this say without fear of punishment or even death. It was a radical move, and it was a revolution that ended up leading to the birth of our great nation, the United States of America. And with George Washington as their leader, he ultimately guided those courageous people to create a new and better place for future generations to come…for us.
So did I forget all of this? Of course not! This is something I always remember. I mean come on, we celebrate it every year on the 4th of July! But it’s this next part that I always seem to overlook, and it’s a part of your life that I suspect you rarely think about too.
We so easily forget to look at this great nation through the eyes of George Washington and our Founding Fathers…
And it’s about time we do just that! So let’s do it now. Let’s do it together…
When George Washington, James Madison, and those important men sat down to write the Constitution of the United States of America, I am aware that I can’t be 100% certain as to what was running through their minds that day. But I do believe I know three things that they didn’t think as they sat down during this magical time in our history…
I believe, as that empty paper lay in front of them, they didn’t take for granted the great opportunities that now stood before them. They didn’t take for granted this newfound freedom which they fought so hard to achieve.
But how about you? Do you take these freedoms we have as a ‘given’ in life? Do you appreciate living in a country where you can choose to have a voice on the topics that affect you? Or did you so easily forget that?
And as these brave men gathered together to navigate the next chapter in history, I also believe that they didn’t think about how they could avoid taxes at all cost. They didn’t think about how they could cheat the ‘government’ because they knew that the ‘government’ was all of them and its citizens. Instead, I suspect they would have paid any amount of money needed to continue to protect that freedom. They probably would have paid anything to make this nation great!
So today, do you still think like them? Or are you one that tries to cheat your way through, avoiding taxes at all costs? Have you remembered that taxes are simply a price to pay for the freedoms we are given? Or did you so easily forget about all of this?
Lastly, I believe that these brave men in our history felt honored and blessed to be able to give its citizens this idea of freedom of speech and the right to bear arms (which is something England still doesn’t have). But I am certain they didn’t take this speech to the extreme and complain about everything that didn’t go their way. And I am sure this right to bear arms wasn’t put in place because they wanted to unnecessarily harm other citizens or shoot up schools filled with innocent children.
So how did we get to this point? When did we start harming our own? And do you too fall into that trap of thinking everything in our country should be decided your way? That everything is owed to YOU, simply because? Or do you know and will you remember that the price of freedom…is also compromise? Did you forget that too?
Just know that if you forgot about all of this, don’t feel bad…I did too. I didn’t remember, and I absolutely took it all for granted. That is until London and what its history reminded me of. It took me back to my roots which is exactly where I needed to go.
So let’s do this together! Let’s get back to our roots and not forget anymore. Instead, we need to remember how we got here, why we got here, and how extremely lucky we really are to be here…in the land of the free. And let’s always remember all of those men and women who continue to fight for our freedom Every.Single.Day. Let’s stop taking it all for granted and remember to do our part to continue to make this nation as great as our forefathers wanted it to be. Let’s think the same way that I believe those men once did…because that great time in our history…it really can be so easy to forget.
Xoxo
Marsha
*For those of you struggling with something in life or have a topic of interest that you want me to talk about in this blog, email me at BeYourBestSelfBlog@gmail.com. Let’s work together to Be Our Best Selves!