Our liberties came with a high price

  • Published
  • By Kari Tilton
  • Ogden Air Logistics Center Public Affairs
HILL AIR FORCE BASE, Utah (AFPN) --  Today started out to be "one of those days." My inability to roll out of bed to my blaring alarm at 5:30 a.m., sharp, snowballed.

The outfit I was planning to wear had a stain that I didn't notice yesterday, and wouldn't you know it, everything else in my closet was wrinkled.

Ironing at 5:45 a.m. isn't usually on my to-do list, but I was pleased to be able to watch the morning news while I did my chores. "Politics, politics, politics," I sigh to myself. "Can't we just all get along?"

When I let my dog out to take care of her morning must-dos, she quickly began barking at something lurking in the bushes. Sworn to protect our family at any cost and ignorant to my reassurances, she refused to come in the house.

Hot steam poured from my flaring nostrils as I chased her around the back yard, yelling in a whisper as to not wake the neighbors. Did I mention it was 21 degrees outside?

My daughter, age 5, was less than cooperative in getting herself dressed for school. Of course, I can't blame her.

She's in kindergarten now and has a lot on her mind. Where did she put the stuffed kitten that she wanted to take for show-and-tell today?

While she searched, I scanned the fully-stocked cupboards, looking for something she might actually eat. We settled on an instant breakfast shake and an apple. She didn't want the skin. To keep the peace, I peeled.

Finally in the car and on our way, I gave myself a little internal pat on the back, impressed by my ability to pull things together and get out the door only 10 minutes late. As we sat at our fourth stoplight of the morning -- I always get the red ones when I'm running late -- my daughter pointed out a large U.S. flag, illuminated and swaying in the light morning breeze.

"Mom, the red stripes are for all the blood shed for our country," she said. "My teacher told me. I can't remember what the white stripes are for, though, mom. Do you know?"

In an instant, my thoughts did an about-face as I stumbled to answer her question.

"I think the white stripes stand for our nation's pure ideals," I said.

I tried to keep it simple. "That means EVERYONE has the same rights. We are all allowed to believe what we want, to say what we feel, to go to church where we choose, to learn, to have dreams and to have jobs. Some people, in other countries, don't have those rights. Our country is special," I added.

"Oh," she says staring out the car window. I don't think she understood.

"Mom," she continued, "did you put a good juice box in my backpack, or one of those yucky ones?" Her 5-year-old, faster-than-the-speed-of-light attention span had shifted.

I sat in silence for the rest of our drive together and I pondered the flag. My daughter hummed quietly, without a care in the world. "What a lucky little girl she is to have been born under this flag," I thought to myself.

Later, sitting in front of my computer, gulping down my first cup of coffee, I couldn't shake our early morning discussion. I wanted to know more about our flag. A quick Internet search took me to a well-known poem written by Ruth Apperson Rous.

"I am the flag of the United States of America. I was born on June 14, 1777, in Philadelphia.

"There the Continental Congress adopted my stars and stripes as the national flag. My thirteen stripes alternating red and white, with a union of thirteen white stars in a field of blue, represented by a new constellation, a new nation dedicated to the personal and religious liberty of mankind.

"Today, 50 stars signal from my union, one for each of the 50 sovereign states in the greatest constitutional republic the world has ever known. My colors symbolize the patriotic ideals and the spiritual qualities of the citizens of my country.

"My red stripes proclaim the fearless courage and integrity of American men and boys and the self-sacrifice and devotion of American mothers and daughters. My white stripes stand for liberty and equality for all. My blue is the blue of heaven, loyalty and faith.

"I represent these eternal principles; liberty, justice and humanity..."

The poem reads on ... "Americans, I am the sacred emblem of your country. I symbolize your birthright, your heritage of liberty purchased with blood and sorrow..."

The poem ends with these words ..."God grant that I may spend eternity in my 'land of the free and the home of the brave' and that I shall ever be known as 'Old Glory,' the flag of the United States of America."

What an inspired work of art. I plan to share this poem in its entirety with my daughter when she is a bit older.

Right now, she's too young to understand. The depth of our flag runs far too deep.

Today, my daughter helped me realize just how lucky I am. It seems that so many of us take our liberties for granted.

Caught up in the whirl of daily activities, we complain about our "problems" -- the housework, our jobs, our politicians. We get tired and we don't want to cook, so we eat out.

We should be thankful to carry burdens like these. Most of us have plenty of food to eat, a roof over our heads and the opportunity to provide for our children, so they can dream the great dreams intended by our forbearers.

As the red stripes in our flag remind us, we shouldn't forget that our liberties came with a high price. Many have, as my daughter said, shed their blood to guarantee these freedoms.

The United States flag is both a symbol of triumph and that of great sacrifice. And, while we enjoy the spoils of the triumph, we should never forget the painful sacrifices made by so many.