This Fourth of July celebration is similar to the one in my small hometown in Indiana. I wonder if many small towns celebrate this way. It has always been my favorite time to go home (next to Thanksgiving).
I have long felt that the real nitty gritty best life is still available in our small towns where neighbors know each other, no one is looked down on and salt of the earth people treat each other with love and respect. Folks here wave as they pass by and are genuinely interested in each other cause we all know we are reaching for having the best life we can, even when times are tough and the rest of the world seems to be getting crazier by the day.
I know when I was going through the crushing heartbreak of divorce in which i lost everything and everyone I loved, including my children, that i would not have survived had I been living in a heartless and harried big city. It was in going through that time of the greatest loss and suffering of my life that I discovered the power and meaning of being part of this community, of being loved and cared about and accepted wherever I went in this little town.
The beautiful thing is that it has only gotten better as folks here care about our shared place and strive to contribute—like the lady who owned a little natural foods store who chose to go into debt to build us a world class new store that is now a treasure for all of us…or the folks who launched a local radio station, community theatre, farmer’s market and so many other things that has made life richer for all of us!
This Fourth of July celebration is similar to the one in my small hometown in Indiana. I wonder if many small towns celebrate this way. It has always been my favorite time to go home (next to Thanksgiving).
Thank you for your lovely comment!
I have long felt that the real nitty gritty best life is still available in our small towns where neighbors know each other, no one is looked down on and salt of the earth people treat each other with love and respect. Folks here wave as they pass by and are genuinely interested in each other cause we all know we are reaching for having the best life we can, even when times are tough and the rest of the world seems to be getting crazier by the day.
I know when I was going through the crushing heartbreak of divorce in which i lost everything and everyone I loved, including my children, that i would not have survived had I been living in a heartless and harried big city. It was in going through that time of the greatest loss and suffering of my life that I discovered the power and meaning of being part of this community, of being loved and cared about and accepted wherever I went in this little town.
The beautiful thing is that it has only gotten better as folks here care about our shared place and strive to contribute—like the lady who owned a little natural foods store who chose to go into debt to build us a world class new store that is now a treasure for all of us…or the folks who launched a local radio station, community theatre, farmer’s market and so many other things that has made life richer for all of us!