What Does It Mean to be Free

Today is National Freedom Day.  I am sure that Hallmark has a card for this somewhere in their collection.  Presently, it is Daybook time; i have scaled way down on this, even though it is one of my favorite times.  The kids have been prompted to write "What does it mean to you to be free?"  It will be interesting to hear their answers.  Lucy, who is the most hesitant at writing - simply because I think writing requires a creative and imaginative exploration that she finds hard to grasp.  I cant say that she is always black and white in her thinking, but often ties she is.  I look over and she is slowly making her letters form.  There might be tears soon.

So, what does it mean to be free?  For me, the answer is simple and because it is simple - I feel I take my freedom for granted - just as I do my sight, my sense of smell and the fact that there will always be food at the near by grocery store.  I think it is hard to teach freedom when you have always had it.  I feel it is hard to know lack of freedom when you have been born with this silver spoon in your mouth. 

I do wish that and I do hope that one day, I can choose to be apart of a greater world.  I continuously fight with this --- my household day to day, my kids, my white collar husband, my functional family.  The ground is solid and yet, i find time to dwell and complain about it. But again, i know no different.  I can read, listen, discuss, hypothesize - but can you really enjoy the taste of an orange by doing all of the above? no, you have to taste it.

What does it mean to be free?  take a look around...... voting, McDonalds (although we never eat fast food), debates, parades, protests, electricity, Internet, technology, transportation, food, etc, etc.  And yet, we are a culture of whiners and complainers and I never have enough time-ers. David Letterman, Jon Stewart, Monday trash day, church on Sunday....on and on and on.  what does it mean not to be free?  An easy response it to take all those away.....but honestly, I don't know.
Thanks for listening.  Time is up.