America Again

from Prescott LIVING Early Summer 2023

Sharlot Hall Museum PROGRAMS, EVENTS FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY AT

by Tod Christensen

Once upon a time there was a country the whole world waited to see if it would fail How it began was so different from other countries but this was no fairytale Brave families traveled into the great unknown just wanting to be free From such humble beginnings this country would become the envy of all who could see

Truly the great melting pot as different colors and cultures all merged into one One people, one vision, bringing only their dreams to this country they would run I said early on that this was no fairytale and that part is certainly true, But people put aside their differences to come together under the red white and blue

Far from perfect some horrible things did happen but from those mistakes the people would grow The people tried their best to be better and through this their true hearts began to show Today some people only want to talk about all the bad and twist the things that occurred They distort the entire picture for whatever reason until to many it’s becomes blurred

They forget that the founders of this country held certain truths to be self-evident, So blatantly obvious that they aren’t open to debate that they were that definite That the government has to recognize every citizen has certain God-given rights, And in order to protect these beliefs you may have to be willing to fight

Sometimes you have to fight an outside enemy, but sometimes the saddest fight was from within And many of the worst were fought over nothing more than the color of someone’s skin But those fights, as hard as they were, always ended with the Just side having won Because in a free country freedom means nothing if it’s not free for everyone

And other nations have tried many times to bring this people to their knees, But the people always put differences aside and to the All Mighty they would plead They would do it in many different forms and many individual ways All recognizing they were part of something bigger in those darkest of days

Some people would have you believe it simply didn’t happen this way if it happened at all But open the history books and you will read many stories of a people who have yet to fall And if you don’t believe those, then use your own eyes at any veteran’s cemetery Where you will see markers from boys from the mountains, cities, and even Little Homes on the Prairie

They believed this to the point they were willing to risk and give up their very own lives And not just boys and husbands sacrificed but the girls as well as the wives Because they saw something special here and they wanted their children to see it too Not exactly the same to everyone, but they all saw something in the red, white, and blue

This thing they saw was greater than any political party or any kind of group Nobody cared about political beliefs when the bullets began flying through the troops They were smart enough to know that if they truly tried to do the right thing No power could stop that people, no dictator and certainly no king

So many ghosts from the past have to be watching us right now As we bicker and argue while they shake their heads and simply wonder how Wondering how we could fight for the trivial after all the places we’ve already been And watching us and wondering if we have what it takes to be America again