Skip to main content

Celebrate July 4th

In this episode – Celebrate July 4th . . .

How do you celebrate the 4th of July holiday? Maybe you hang an American flag on your house, barbecue burgers and hotdogs, have a beer, watch baseball on TV, or perhaps you're looking to get your community involved.

Our neighborhood has had many young families move in during the last five years. And many people walk the quiet streets of the community. So, this is one way to draw everyone together – of the people, for the people, who are out and about on the streets and sidewalks at different times - and to have a little fun.

Stay tuned, and I'll share a suggestion that our neighborhood makes to build cohesiveness and family spirit, which might inspire you to do the same.

First, the "Rest of the Story" about Independence Day is from constitutioncenter.org.

Have you ever wondered when the Founding Fathers signed the Declaration of Independence in July 1776? Some say it was July 2nd, and some say July 4th. Which date has the legitimate claim on Independence Day?

If our second President, John Adams, could be transported to the future, he would say July 2nd. Other Founders would insist on July 4th, the day recognized as a federal holiday in the United States by our national government. And still, other Founders would say, "What Independence Day?" since the holiday wasn't widely celebrated until many Founders had passed away.

Here is evidence to help you decide which Independence Day is actually Independence Day!

Officially, the Continental Congress declared its freedom from Great Britain on July 2nd, 1776, when it voted to approve a resolution submitted by delegate Richard Henry Lee of Virginia, declaring "That these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent States, that they are absolved from all allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain is, and ought to be, totally dissolved."

John Adams thought July 2nd would be a national holiday for generations to come:

Adams wrote to his wife Abigale, "[Independence Day] will be the most memorable Epocha in the History of America. I am apt to believe it will be celebrated by succeeding Generations as a great anniversary Festival. It ought to be solemnized with Pomp and Parade with shows, Games, Sports, Guns, Bells, Bonfires, and Illuminations from one End of this continent to the other from this time forward forever more."

After voting on independence on July 2nd, the Continental Congress needed to draft a document explaining the move to the public. A committee of five (John Adams, Roger Sherman, Robert Livingston, Benjamin Franklin, and Thomas Jefferson) proposed the document in draft form, and it took two days for Congress to agree on the edits.

Once Congress approved the Declaration of Independence document on July 4th, it ordered it to be sent to a printer named John Dunlap. About 200 copies of the "Dunlap Broadside" version of the document were printed, with John Hancock's name printed at the bottom. Today, 26 copies remain.

That is why the Declaration has the words "IN CONGRESS, July 4, 1776" at its top, because that is the day the approved version was signed in Philadelphia.

Now you know the rest of the story!

Anyway, here's a tradition you can start in your neighborhood for those listeners who stuck around.

On Thursday, July 4, 2024, at 10:00 a.m., our neighbors will host the 5th Annual July 4th Neighborhood Parade! You will see colorful Red, White, and Blue printed flyers near your mailbox with the following.

Decorate bikes, trikes, strollers, or just walk!
Or, stand outside your house and cheer.
Hotdogs and Jumpy afterward.

Come on by and cheer on the kids. Happy Independence Day!

I'm Patrick Ball; thanks for listening. I'll see you in the next episode.

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Most Popular of All Time

The Compass of Cuba: Mom

🎄  Preview of this week's  On the Fly  blog: A Holiday Tribute to Mom. As the holidays hustle with pixels and beeps, the world scrolls along in a smartphone-y sleep. I log off for a moment—just one little minute— To breathe in the past and to sit myself in it. My mind doesn’t wander to faraway places, Or trips full of tickets and new airport faces. Instead, it drifts backward, as memories do, to Cuba, Illinois, where the best moments grew. To a home full of warmth, in the wintry Midwest, Where my mother—dear “Marcie”—put love to the test. With a smile that could melt the most frigid of dawns, and hugs that hung on you like shivering fawns. She came from La Rochelle in France, brave and bright, Across oceans and war shadows, into new light. A town full of strangers soon felt like her own, And her courage built up the foundation of home. “Oh yes, we know Marcie!” the locals would say— “It's Doc Ball’s French lady! She brightens the day!” She cleaned, and she cooked, and sh...
2 comments
Read more

Believing Is Seeing

🎄 In this episode, Believing Is Seeing . . . It's December, we bustle, we wrap, and we dash. We sort life into boxes— myths  here,  to-dos  in a stash. We whisper of Santa (adult code: “Not Real”), but hold on one minute—let’s rethink this whole deal. For the stories we cherish, the movies we stream, hold more truth in their sparkle than we grown-ups may deem. So hop in this sleigh and hold on real tight— We’re chasing down Santa by the glow of his light! Scott Calvin once landed in the North Pole’s cold air, with elves, cocoa, and snow everywhere. He squinted and frowned—“This just  cannot  be so!” (Like thinking tangled lights will detangle if we  blow .) Then Judy the Elf gave a cocoa so steaming,  and said something simple . . . yet surprisingly gleaming: Seeing’s not believing—no, that’s not the key. "Believing is seeing!"   Just trust, and  you’ll  see!” Kids don’t need a map or a satellite screen to know Santa’s workshop is her...
1 comment
Read more

Stamps and Snow

In this episode, Stamps and Snow . . .   You don’t usually walk into the local Post Office expecting a time warp . . . but here we are. All we wanted were stamps for this year's Christmas cards— yes, the old-fashioned paper ones that require licking, sticking, and hoping the Postal Service is feeling ambitious this week. But holiday errands have a talent for slowing you down, almost like the universe whispering, “Relax. You’re not getting out of this line any faster anyway.” So we waited. And while we waited, we talked (Are you surprised?). Because the Post Office is one of the few places where people still look up from their phones long enough to talk . . . Maybe it's because they're holding packages. It’s the modern town square: part civic duty, part free entertainment, part sociology experiment. The discussion began with holiday specials streaming on Netflix, Paramount+, and other services during this time of year. One gentleman who has lived in Vista since 1958 told us,...
3 comments
Read more

Night Before Christmas

I n this episode, Night Before Christmas . . .  (In the spirit of Edgar Albert Guest) I’ve wrestled with the tangled lights the way I always do— With just enough patience left to see the project through. I climb the ladder carefully; the years have taught me how. To take my time with every step and keep a steady brow. We hang the faded ornaments I’ve known since I was small, the chipped, the cracked, the tilted ones—I love them best of all. Santa’s lost a bit of paint, the stars’ leaning right, but oh, it casts a holy glow across the room tonight. The kitchen hums with activity, with laughter, and with cheer, as voices drift like echoes from a long-forgotten year. The floor is strewn with paper scraps, the clock is ticking slow, As Christmas finds its own sweet pace and sets our house aglow. The hallway grows a little still; the lights are dimmed, and low, Small shoes are lined in messy pairs to wait for morning’s snow. The fire's warm, the room is full, the world is deep and wide,...
2 comments
Read more