We're in Seattle today, having Father's Day lunch (grilled out) at my brother's house. We stay further north with another friend tonight before our flight tomorrow.
It's oddly appropriate that I am in the city I was born in as I will be reminded of my citizenship over the next week. Being an American is a privilege that I didn't understand when I was little. It became more significant to me when I turned 18 and participated more fully in this representative democracy. I was only just beginning to fathom that I had been handed (simply by virtue of my birth) automatic entrance into the inner life of perhaps the biggest superpower on earth. Nor did I imagine at that time how much blood, sweat, and tears were expended to make such a nation possible. I definitely did not realize the manner in which God providentially has blessed my country. So I am indeed very thankful for this gift of American citizenship.
However, when I lived in England for 4 years I also began to appreciate the contrast of the USA and the UK, and the way that other members of our human race may perceive our actions and policies... sometimes misunderstanding them, but often shedding light on things we Americans are blind to,
This leads me to my second thought, which is my need for humility. I did not earn my citizenship; but even more importantly, belonging to such a powerful nation is not a cause for boasting. We are capable of great harm as well as great good (the Founding Fathers got that). That doesn't negate the good we have done, but it ought to make us humble.
Signing off for now,
Brian Huseland
1 comment:
Thanks for posting these comments, Brian. Really appreciate the history about both US and Canada. I know so little about our northern neighbor, except that we enjoy hiking there, hearing "eh", and chuckling that donuts are a side dish to sandwiches at Tim Hortons. I see the celebration of 200 years of peace between Canada and US was on my 50th birthday!
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