July 4, 2025 marks 249 years since a group of men in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania signed a document that would forever alter the course of human history. Declaring independence from a tyrannical government hellbent on world domination, the signers of the document risked life and limb to announce their intention to the world. They would not be bullied, they would not stand for the abuse levied against them and their beloved home.
America was officially born 10 years later, after a decade of war. Men and women fought, and died, to provide a place where their children, grandchildren and every generation that followed would be able to live free of tyranny. From Bunker Hill to Yorktown, Saratoga to Concord, they shed blood and tears to build the foundation of a nation their descendants could call home.
That call, and that fight for freedom rings through the centuries.
America has stood as a beacon of hope, even in its darkest hours. Even as men and women were led across borders in the dead of night, cold and scared, making their way out of the shackles of slavery as a civil war raged around them, a light shone through.
That light shattered the darkness in the trenches and battlefields of Europe in great wars that pitted brother against brother. As evil stood on the verge of triumph, it shined like a lighthouse on a foggy night to guide the world through.
Even with her strengths, though, she has suffered mightily.
Ideology has divided the people all along the way. Like a family quarreling over who should be in charge, politicians and snake oil salesmen have risen over the centuries with promises of ushering in a better way. They’ve lied, cheated and stolen their way to power, offering empty words.
Sometimes change was needed. When people were repressed, when the weak were unable to stand up for themselves, strong advocates and leaders rose to the occasion. The world was changed for the better through things like the Emancipation Proclamation and the Civil Rights Act.
Other times, what appeared to be positive change cloaked the true intention of the mover. Laws meant to grow the power of the people in charge were implemented under the guise of protecting the innocent from dangers beyond their own imagination. Monsters intent on doing harm lurked around every corner, and only those in charge could save America and her people from a horrible fate.
Some of those monsters were even real.
Terrible tragedies have brought the nation together. The clarion call of war sunk ships and killed many in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Great buildings were reduced to ash in Oklahoma and New York City. Each and every time, people rose to the occasion and fought back the darkness.
Today, we face another challenge.
Threats to the very existence of humanity lurk in the shadows. Rising oceans and changing climate, leaders who govern through threats of global annihilation, people who are starving and dying every day from preventable causes, and hate against other human beings just for being alive are but a small number of the perils we face.
Like the group of men who stood in Independence Hall in 1776, we are met with a choice.
We can stand by and let the darkness take control, weave its way through until the light is suffocated, or we can stand up and face it head on. We can watch as the world slowly fades, as our friends, neighbors and loved ones die around us, or we can be the linchpin of a better future.
It won’t be easy to claw our way back, and nothing worth doing ever is. It all starts with small changes; simple acts of kindness that let others know they aren’t alone. Helping a neighbor with their groceries, sharing a kind word or smile with a stranger, being there for someone who needs a shoulder to cry on.
We can put the good of humanity on our shoulders and make the choice to bring positivity to the world instead of hate and anger. Instead of asking people to pay us back, we can ask people to pay it forward. We can support our communities, buying local and volunteering when we are able.
The will of the people, the strength to do what’s right and overcome the challenges before us, is still as it was all those years ago. It isn’t that we’ve lost the ability to make the world better, it’s that we’ve forgotten that we can.
And when we remember that, there’s nothing we can’t do.
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