Enjoying the 4th

It's early Friday morning and I'm delighted to not be working today. We're packing up as we speak so we can enjoy a couple of days away to celebrate our fine nation's 233rd birthday. What a young nation we are!

We're off to the shores of Lake Michigan for a couple of days of camping:

And jet-skiing:

All five of us are going although Our Lady of BYU is insistent that she leave earlier in order to maximize her time in the sun. Apparently her desire to get skin cancer, I mean a tan, outweighs common sense. We're going up with some good friends and are looking forward to spending time with them. We'll see how it goes, as the weather looks a bit dodgy (welcome to midwest summers), but it promises to be fun anyway.

I'm grateful to be a citizen of the United States. If one looks at the US from the lens of an outsider, say one who resides in another country, the US can look like one big dysfunctional mess. And in many ways, it is. But it's a mess that works. It works in spite of itself. I am free to live as I choose. I am free to worship as I choose. I am free to say what I choose to say, without fear of recrimination. Well, at least, no government recrimination. I'm also grateful that I live in a country where I can travel freely. One of the choicest things I have from the government is this:

That blue book has allowed me to knock on the door of countries around the world, to see and taste the cultures of so many different places. I've been very fortunate. But those travels have also allowed me to recognize how fortunate I am to be a citizen of the United States. It's good to be free.

Enjoy the 4th!