There was great excitement on the 4th of July in Philadelphia in 1776 when the Declaration of Independence was adopted. But that was just the “beginning.”
On the 5th of July, 1776, there were many challenging — many discouraging — days and years ahead, before the brash American colonists succeeded in winning the American Revolution and establishing our wonderful United States of America.
Now — on this 5th of July in 2010 — we have independence but our job still is not done. Our challenges continue every day!
We have inherited the greatest, freest, richest nation the world has ever seen. But it’s not perfect. We still have lots of problems, lots of big issues, lots of huge challenges, and lots of differences among our fellow Americans — as they did in 1776.
Then, independence was very much in doubt. Today, we take our blessings for granted. May we continue to earn them — and deserve them.