Happy 4th of July

I'm really grateful that I'm an American.  

Actually, I wish the world wasn't even divided up into nations.  I wish rather that we all recognized ourselves as just part of the community of the Earth, never a situation where it is "us" against "them", never a day where someone suffers more because of the country where they live, never a time when we take from one country to give to another.

But, that is not the world we live in.

Through no effort of my own, I was born into a nation that offers to me a lot of opportunity and abundance.  I've never been without food.  I've never been in the  middle of a war.  I've always had choices.  This nation has its problems as well but 

I've always had a hopeful future.

For these things I am grateful.

Happy Birthday U.S.A!