Tag Archives: fireworks

Freedom Isn’t Free

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You’ve heard the words, freedom isn’t free. It’s a catchy phrase, thrown out on days such as the 4th of July. And it’s true. Our freedom was built on the backs of those that came before us.

My husband died a week ago. He was a Vietnam Vet who spent 364 days on the ground fighting for our country those many years ago. You could say he died for our country. Someone might question that statement as he lived a full long life. He didn’t lose his earthly life those many years ago in a foreign country, but a piece of who he was died in Vietnam, left behind, never to be the same again. I suspect it is the same for all those who have come home from the battles they fought protecting our freedom.

I didn’t know my husband prior to his service in Vietnam. I met him soon afterward. I saw the nightmares, the diving for shelter when fireworks were shot off or a car backfired. I lived with the part of him kept locked away, never to talk about until Alzheimer’s set in.

I saw his ways to numb the pain and the way he kept himself closed off so he wouldn’t always feel, not being able to handle seeing someone he loved hurting. He paid a price for our freedom in a war that wasn’t popular as there were no acclaims when those vets came home from service. So for a time they bottled it up inside feeling shamed for fighting for a war that was not popular, yet they still believed our country was the greatest there is.

On this day when we celebrate our freedom, many see it as a day off work. A day to party. A day for fun with friends. Yet we shouldn’t forget that we are celebrating our freedom. We have the freedom to worship. The freedom to speak freely. The freedom to move about our country freely and the list is endless. Is it any wonder so many are coming from oppressed countries to share what we have?

After Vietnam my husband was always grateful for seeing another day. It came from surviving. When fighting to see another day these men didn’t think about if the person next to them was black, white, or any other race. They didn’t care if someone was a Catholic, or Lutheran or Jewish. They knew their souls after sharing these life and death situations. Race and religion didn’t matter. They had each others backs.

Today as we celebrate our freedoms we need to be aware of how precious they are, and remember the sacrifice others made for us to be free. We must not let history be repeated with these freedoms are being threatened. Voting rights are being challenged and put down, women’s rights and the rights of those that are not white but different races are being trampled on, not to mention the right to live safely no matter the diversity in gender. Religions are fighting in the name of God, threatening those that have no voice. Freedom of religion was not meant for only certain religions to rule. Freedom for all seems to be threatened by some factions that want freedom only for those that agree with a certain point of view.

Freedom of speech, religion in our world todays appears to be chosen by whether we are Democrat or Republican, black or white. Our freedom was fought for on the strength of Americans on the battlefield. These men and women didn’t divide up by political party to protect our freedom. They were and are Americans fighting to defend our right to live free.

We take our freedom for granted. Today is a day for us to stop, in the midst of the revelry and noise and be thankful we are Americans. United we stand, divided we fall. We can make a promise to unite, not divide so freedom can ring always for everyone in this great land.

We owe it to those heroes dead and alive whose lives have been forever changed by their experiences in war who fought to protect our freedom to do better and not take that freedom for granted.

Snap, Sizzle, Pop…It’s the Fourth of July

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Something About Nothing by Julie Seedorf

Published in the Albert Lea Tribune the week of July 3, 2017

14687804116_c553cd4dc4_zI don’t love fireworks, but I don’t hate them either. I think they are fun and pretty, and I have many memories of my childhood of Fourth of July with my dad and his love of Black Cat firecrackers.

I think there are a time and place for fireworks — celebrations, and of course the Fourth of July, but I would differ with people on the time or place.

One of my dad’s favorite activities with the Black Cat firecrackers was making a hole in a tin can, setting a firecracker in the hole, setting it in a pan of water and seeing how high in the air the firecracker would blow the can. When I was a kid, fireworks of almost any kind were illegal except for sparklers, and if I remember right,  small firecrackers and snakes might also have been legal. Penalties were different in those days. If the police caught you with firecrackers you were given a warning not a fine — at least that is what happened to my family and friends.

On the Fourth of July, we would travel to my dad’s farm, have a bonfire and shoot our fireworks. Probably many of them were illegal fireworks. I suppose it could be said that we were being told one time a year it was fine to break the law. We never talked about it but if I think about it now, it goes into that gray area where we choose what we want our kids to believe about honesty and following the law.  However, most of my family and friends found a countryside to shoot fireworks. Half of that was because of the law and half was because of respect for our neighbors.

I still remember visiting my son in Omaha one July Fourth. They had a watering ban because it was so dry and people would be fined for watering lawns. It was also illegal to shoot fireworks in the city of Omaha. But that was a law everyone ignored, so on the morning of the Fourth, the paper’s headlines were: If you are going to shoot fireworks please water your lawns. The fireworks started in the neighborhood around 8 a.m. and continued until about 2 a.m. the next morning. It wasn’t little fireworks, but many were the kind you see at events. The next morning the street sweeper cleaned the streets as it looked like it had snowed fireworks, and the street and lawns were covered with debris. It was a fun day because it was expected, and people knew what was going to happen.

The past few weeks around 11 or 11:30 p.m. loud booms could be heard in our neighborhood and other neighborhoods in our community. Facebook comments lit up in protest of the noise so late at night. Dogs and cats got scared and caused problems for their owners. Small children woke from their sleep scared, and those who suffer from PTSD almost took cover. Many veterans, no matter how long it has been, dive for shelter when they hear the noise because it brings back memories from their time in the war. It was an inappropriate time for fireworks because it was unexpected.

People felt there was a lack of respect for their neighbors. It is easier on veterans, children, and pets if you can prepare for the event that might shake their world. I know we can’t always prepare for the unexpected but in this case, trauma can be avoided by warning your neighbors, waiting until the actual day, or taking your fireworks into the country and an open area where others will not hear.

It is Independence Day and we should be celebrating. Fireworks are fun but remember to be careful is also a part of shooting off fireworks. Kids love fireworks. My grandkids are excited about this holiday. My husband and I will be staying home because he is one of those veterans who wants to take a dive when they hear the sound. We do not go to firework events. I remember the first time I was with him when we were dating, and fireworks started at an event. He almost pulled me straight to the ground on the pavement. Years later, the sound still sometimes triggers that feeling.

Enjoy your day. Have fun, be respectful and show your pride in being an American. We do live in a great land.

 Julie Seedorf’s column appears every Monday. Send email to her at hermionyvidaliabooks@gmail.com