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The Community
Independence Day Parade
That’s My Opinion
By Bob Robinson
Photos: Ansonia and New Madison parades…
I vaguely remember seeing an occasional fireworks display when I was a
kid… they weren’t that big in the 50s. It was usually a neighborhood
project.
The celebrations I remember most were in Lincoln, Nebraska when I was
in junior high. We would block off our street for square dancing (and
other “square” stuff, like barbeque and beer; and pop, sparklers,
cherry bombs and snakes for the kids), divide up the two sides of the
street and shoot pop bottle rockets at each other.
Of course that was before the safety police got involved. I don’t
remember anyone ever getting hurt or any houses burning down. Maybe it
happened… but we never heard about it on the 6 or 11 o’clock news.
The big folks sometimes got a little tipsy and us kids giggled at
our parents for acting like little children. This may shock some of the
younger generations, but it was good, clean American fun in the 1950s.
I don’t remember if any notice was taken of the reason for the
festivities, other than it was July 4… party time.
I also don’t remember ever seeing an Independence Day Parade as a
child… just years later on TV. In high school, I’m not sure my brain
even catalogued “July 4” as a holiday. It was just another day spent
trying to figure out who the heck I was.
At Texas A&M, semesters were over by July 4 and only the students
who were taking summer school or had jobs hung around. The holidays
went pretty much unnoticed on my part. Anyone who has read my book,
“God Don’t Make Junk, from Ramblings of an Old Man,” knows why.
College Station, Texas, could have had a dozen parades from one end of
town to the other and a half dozen fireworks shows and I wouldn’t have
noticed.
In California, I started noticing. It most likely had to do with coming
to grips with who I was and figuring out what was right – and wrong -
as I saw the devastation of small businesses, struggling entrepreneurs
and homeowners by taxation, regulations and other legislation coming
out of Sacramento and local entities. I had my own business and
commuted between Orange and San Bernardino Counties. It gave me a lot
of time to think. One of the topics that ran through my head was what
our forefathers would think about California in the 1980s and 90s.
More important, I finally saw the relationship between Independence Day
and our standing armed forces. My Air Force background and time at
Texas A&M had already given me a tremendous respect for our
military, but I never consciously made the connection until then.
Since 1776 men and women have died preserving the freedoms we enjoy
today… the independence we celebrate each year on July 4.
I remember sitting down and reading – for the first time since junior
high – the Declaration of Independence. I wanted to cry. Instead, I
read – for the first time since junior high – the Constitution of the
United States of America and our Bill of Rights.
I didn’t cry. I got mad. I was done with the “Golden State.” It was
long past time to return to the Midwest that I remembered. It took over
a decade, but we made it. Greenville, Darke County, Ohio.
I discovered fireworks again. Not in the manner I remembered in
Lincoln, but in the environs of the “celebration” put on by local
communities. But more important than that, I discovered a great
American tradition… the community parade.
On Wednesday I had the honor of attending two Independence Day parades…
Ansonia’s at 12:30 and New Madison’s at 3 p.m. The enjoyment I
experienced with my first (which, by the way, was in New Madison 10
years ago) has not gone away. The honor guard, the first responders,
the kids chasing candy… are – at least to me – what rural America is
all about.
I don’t understand how anybody could not love a parade. It’s people
working together… it’s a community putting aside its differences and
joining hands to celebrate an event common to all. It’s a “thank you”
to our first responders, from EMTs to police and firefighters to our
military.
It’s a tribute to the America that is… and for as long as there are
parades celebrating our freedoms, always will be.
It’s a reminder to me of who I was 50 years ago… even 40 or 30 years
ago… and who I am today. It’s a reminder that we control our own
destinies. We can turn our lives around if we so wish and are willing
to work at it…
It’s a reminder that my satisfaction and pleasure in being able to do
what I love today could only have happened in America.
For that I am indebted to the founders for the gift of their foresight,
and to our military for preserving what the founders gave us. The
community Independence Day Parade is just one of the ways in which I
can acknowledge those gifts.
With gratitude, that’s my opinion. What’s yours?
Editor’s Note… the
first six photos are from the first parade in Ansonia, the second six
from New Madison. Watch for the complete sets on Friday and Saturday.
By the way, I had my ears pinned back in New Madison. They insisted
they have the Largest Fireworks Celebration in Darke County… do I see a
“community pride debate” coming? We’ll see. I’ve been promised photos
from their celebration.
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