Today is July 5. Yesterday was July 4. Wow, talk about being on the ball; don't tell me, and the day before that was July 3?
The point is that July 4 is the day that America cheers for freedom. July 4, 2004 was no exception. There were the usual parades. Parks were packed with revellers and grills and children and loud music. It was a perfect day, weather-wise. Not a cloud in the sky. Nothing except on the horizon the storm crow Iraq.
Letter from a soldier
Being theoretically on vacation, we visited a church as guests yesterday. A note from a member in Iraq was read during the service. The letter said that the soldier was risking his life for the cause of freedom. An uneasy silence ensued. Later the same day (July 4 remember?), after packing for our trip back to England, we caught a few minutes of an Independence Day celebration on TV. At one point, children of military personnel were brought onto the stage and asked: 'where is your dad?' One boy, aged no more than eight, was asked to say something to his dad. He said simply: 'Hi papa'. The look on that child's face as he thought of his father that day was indescribable. It was like watching innocence crack.
