It's the Fourth of July weekend here in the United States -- Independence Day. As usual on flag-waving holidays, I put the flag out in front of the house. Several of my neighbors are similarly inclined, but most are not.
And after all the years of putting out the flag, I honestly cannot say why I do it other than that I think it is nice to find little ways to take stock of where you are and where you might have been. Just reflect -- not wave the flag necessarily.
Flags stand for ... well, they stand for whatever you want them to stand for. Heroism, patriotism,
vulgarity, victory, greed, kindness, honor, skulduggery. There may be those who insist on a single glowing meaning, but people like that give me the collywobbles. Flags are just people, dressed differently ... being who they want to be and, with luck, considering whether being that way really assures any peace.I still don't know why I put the flag out, but it's a sunny day and there is a gay color in the breeze.
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I imagine laziness is inescapable, but honesty is still possible. I propose a new flag to express what this nation has become. The stars should be spinning around a swastika and peace symbol circling each other warily. I doubt such a divide is new, but acceptance of it might be.
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