Indianapolis, IN

Wed 4 July 2007

So, I’m thinking about the Fourth of July. I remember back when I was a kid, and everyone used to go to my grandma’s house for a cookout. All of my cousins and I used to run around and play all afternoon. Sometimes my uncles would light some smaller fireworks on the sidewalk for us. It was a time of family camaraderie and good food. In the evening, we would drive to the city park to see the fireworks display after the sun went down. It was always a good memory for me. I loved the fireworks display. There was something amazing about the designs and colors of it (and wondering if we were ever going to be rained on from debris). (I also never remember hearing about fireworks accidents when I was a kid. We were always careful and had an adult around. We also let them off in safe areas. We had what was called common sense.) It’s also a celebration of the first motion in the Continental Congress for independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain. (Somehow the originally reason for the holiday gets lost in all the drinking and lighting off Roman candles.) But then I got older. One summer, I was in Japan. Two summers I was working in a grocery store and didn’t have off (my job position was “peon.”) Three summers I was teaching Japanese in northern Minnesota (with Concordia Language Villages); so, being an American holiday, we didn’t celebrate it at the Japanese camp. (However, the Japanese celebrate the Tanabata festival on July 7, so the kids weren’t completely devoid of celebrations.) Last summer, we spent it in Chicago, and watched people give off a nice display in a park across the street from my mother-in-law’s house. This year calls for rain, so I’m not sure what we’re doing. I would like to go somewhere to see a good fireworks display. But at the same time, I don’t think I want to battle traffic, rain and the crowds with a toddler. Maybe next year.

: Fourth of July, July Fourth, Independence Day, holidays, fireworks, fireworks safety