This Fourth of July, let's celebrate common ground and shared ideals | Suzy Leonard
I love the Fourth of July.
The music, the pageantry, the fireworks: They all celebrate this place we’re lucky enough to call home.
I can’t make it all the way through “The Star-Spangled Banner” or “America the Beautiful” without tearing up, and I still know every word to the Preamble of the U.S. Constitution, thanks to Saturday morning cartoons and "Schoolhouse Rock." (If you’re a child of the ’70s and ’80s, I’ll bet you’re singing it right now.)
In fall 2019, just months before the world shut down, I had the chance to visit our nation’s capital with friends.
It was a jam-packed week. We racked up 20,000 steps a day wandering between monuments, through museums and around Arlington Cemetery.
I’d been to Washington, D.C., before for weekend visits and work conferences, but this trip was special. It was the first time I had the chance to really dig in and really explore the city.
I found the U.S. Capitol especially moving. As we made our way around the Rotunda of the National Archives, I pored reverently over the Declaration of Independence, Constitution of the United States and the Bill of Rights.
I found the U.S. Capitol especially moving. Maybe I should have been embarrassed, a grown woman standing under “The Apotheosis of Washington” in the eye of the Rotunda crying and humming the melody from a childhood cartoon.
I wasn’t, though. This felt like sacred ground, a place to pay homage to the birth of our country and show respect for those who had the fortitude to nurture her growth.
I’m grateful to our leaders, past and present, especially those who have had the courage to put the country’s needs before their own. I hold in high regard those who realize progress often calls for compromise and empathy.
Perhaps we can learn from Founding Fathers Thomas Jefferson and John Adams, who both died on July 4, 1826.
According to historians, the two initially admired one another, but their relationship soured after a heated election in 1800.
They finally were able to repair the relationship and renew their friendship through letters exchanged between 1812 and 1826.
Maybe if today’s leaders became pen pals of sorts, they could discover an America that rests on common ground and that shares common ideals.
This year, I will spend the Fourth on Cocoa Beach with friends, many of whom I’ve had spirited discussions with over the years. We’ll share food and drink. We’ll plunge into the waves of the Atlantic and laze under umbrellas as the salty surf dries on our skin.
We will toast our good fortune at being born American, reminding ourselves that our country remains great despite her flaws, just as our friendships are rich, despite our differing opinions.
And because the Fourth of July is America’s birthday, I hope you’ll join me in a common wish for our country: that we can converse and debate with passion and respect for one another.
Happy Independence Day, y’all.
Suzy Fleming Leonard is a retired writer and editor for FLORIDA TODAY. Reach her at [email protected].
This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Join me July 4th in toasting our country's birth, future | Leonard