July 4th

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, —

Sound familiar? It is a few of the 181 words of the Declaration of Independence I had to memorize as an eighth grader. When in the Course of human events... Famous first words with significance in these times as we approach the holiday that commemorates its signing by fifty-six of our nation's forefathers. The majority of them owned slaves. Some were abolitionists. Not all of them were born in the new land. (Two were born in England, two in Scotland and three in Ireland).

On June 7, 1776 the Second Continental Congress heard a resolution by Richard Henry Lee of Virginia that the colonies should be free from allegiance to the British crown. That started the process. The resolution was formally accepted on July 2. Two days later, the 1458 words of the Declaration of Independence proclaiming our young nation's ideals was officially adopted.

We are a work in progress.

John Adams wrote in a letter to his wife that the day should be celebrated with “Pomp and parade…games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires and illuminations from one end of this continent to the other.” Though he was referring to July 2, when the Lee Resolution was officially accepted, this is the way we commemorate July 4th, the official adoption day of the Declaration of Independence. Its reading should be part of the annual hooplah, don’t you think?