What Does Freedom Mean To You this July 4th, 2021?

In a country that encourages freedom of speech, this is your hour! What does freedom mean to YOU? It would be interesting to note the differences in opinion. 

Freedom may mean different things to different people because we all have different frames of reference. In other words, because our lifestyles and backgrounds differ, we have different outlooks on life and my sense of freedom is not necessarily your sense of freedom. 

This past year and a half, living through a pandemic, has shown us what could be taken away from us, and that is the fear … what freedoms have I been taking for granted in the past? What did I miss the most while in isolation? Our entire world changed, we were sent into lockdown, and freedom was removed. 

Which Freedom Did You Miss Most?

• The freedom of meeting a friend for coffee.
• The freedom of breathing fresh air.
• The freedom of being able to hold a child’s birthday party.
• The freedom of the absence of fear.
• The freedom of health.
• The freedom of wealth.
• The freedom of coughing without causing a stir around you.
• The freedom of leaving my house.
• The freedom of being able to visit a loved one in the hospital.
• The freedom of hugging our loved ones.
• The freedom of walking around without hand sanitizer and a mask. 

This year we’re celebrating more than what our forefathers did for us. We’re celebrating lives not lost, we’re celebrating doctors, nurses, and first responders. We’re celebrating having accessibility to oxygen and a hospital bed when it is most needed. We’re celebrating a vaccine!

Anyone For Tea?

Back in the 1700’s Americans united against a tyrannical rule, we learned to say “NO” when we were being treated unfairly. The Boston Tea Party is forever cited in history when Americans stood together to free our singular, extraordinary country from oppression. 

Freedom ideals have changed over time, and instead of standing as one to fight a tyrannical threat, we stand disunited against one another because of prejudices. Freedom is now concerned with thoughts like: Can I walk the streets without having to run for my life? Can young women live without the fear of being captured into slavery to slake a “fellow man’s” sinister appetite? Can I spout my very own opinion on social media without creating a platform for civil war?

Our lives have been irrevocably changed since that day way back on July 4th, 1776, when we distanced ourselves from a country that was essentially trying to take away our freedom, only to now be removing other’s freedoms through our own sense of judgment and right and wrong. 

Do you think it’s possible for a society to be able to live in complete freedom and unity? What do you think? 

My humble opinion - Feel Free To Give Me Yours

My thoughts are that our fight for freedom actually lies deep within the human heart. We fight with each other because every one of us needs to feel approved of and validated. We live as a human race where we are not assured of our significance and value, we are starved of respect and honor and we don’t feel like we matter or count. Unless this changes, individually, within each of us, we will always be freedom fighters. 

Our responsibility is not to change others, but to change ourselves. To work towards being kind, non-judgmental, and accepting of others, no matter where they come from or what color their skin is. 

We have power. We have the power to change and to teach the next generation to do things better. We have choices, make them good choices that lead us personally into freedom. Your personal freedom becomes a community’s freedom, which becomes a nation’s freedom. 

Happy 4th America!