Cloudy Times

For the first time in my life, celebrating this great nation felt hollow. When the sun returns, we can reclaim our honor. That will be a day to celebrate.

Morally adrift, the land we love is under storm. I saw not a glimmer of light and wanted to cry. - July 4, 2025

No Fireworks 2025

This Fourth of July in Austin, Texas, there were no parades, no music in the park, no fireworks bursting above the city. Torrential rain and devastating floods swept away the celebrations.

I spent the day alone at home, watching water slam against my patio glass and flipping through TV specials constantly interrupted by flood warnings and the latest squabbling out of Washington.

Watching fireworks on TV, just ain’t the same anyway. So I tried Amazon Music instead. Lee Greenwood’s God Bless the USA began to play—normally a rousing favorite. But the familiar lyrics didn’t resonate this time. Instead the song annoyed me; and for that, I felt ashamed. Mostly, I felt sad. As I listened uninspired, I stared at the sky outside. There were no fireworks, no stars or moon; just fast moving, dark clouds and a big mess.

For the first time in my life, celebrating this great nation felt hollow. I looked blankly into the gloomy night; saw not a glimmer of light and wanted to cry.

The Land I Love

I did not appreciate until that dark moment that I had lost my patriotism. And I want it back. I value loving the United States of America– and right now, I ain’t feeling it. Call me old school; but I yearn for the nation I was raised in, worked in, and voted for. Not the current state.

Watching the Apollo 11 moon landing on July 20, 1969, was a defining moment of the 20th century, drawing an estimated 650 million viewers—roughly one-sixth of the world's population at the time.

Growing up, my faith in America felt unshakable. I was raised to believe. I remember huddling with my family in 1969, watching Neil Armstrong’s first steps on the moon. My mother, a John F. Kennedy devotee, wept with joy and made my father hang the flag. I was only eight years old, but I understood the gravity of the moment.

I was child-engrained in daily prayer and to pledge allegiance with hand on heart. And I still believe. In college I was a double major in Journalism and History, editor of the college newspaper, arrogantly opinionated, and a news junkie ever since. My career included global travel-- England, China, Japan, India, Singapore-- every country and destination and person I encountered, showed uncanny knowledge, interest and deep respect for the accomplishments and power of the United States. That was over 20 years ago. Despite our flaws, they believed and I believed that America stood for opportunity and goodness, and that our example helped lead humanity forward.

The Moral Storm

Not anymore. We have lost that respect from every corner of the world. Here too. Me too.

There is a greater, far more deadly storm upon us all still raging. And the casualty of innocents is exponentially more sinister and far reaching than nature’s unmerciful wrath at the Guadalupe River on this infamous Texas 4th of July, 2025.

Since Trump’s return, our country has abandoned its better self. January 6 was excused, even celebrated, by millions. Leaders flout laws, intimidate judges, abandon allies, and normalize lies. We mock science, slash aid, attack freedom of speech, militarize our streets, and call cruelty strength. The immigration fiasco is outrageous. A nation that once inspired me now feels morally adrift.

 The full damage is yet unknown. We need the sun again.

Watching our honor erode has been more painful to this nation than any natural disaster could be. The very fabric of our treasured society seems to have unraveled. The lives lost, the pain inflicted, the injustice done, the fear and hate in which we all have been tricked-- it is tragic beyond comprehension.

I am 64 years old, an average citizen who has long been proud and grateful and enamored by the greatness of our nation. I have voted in every national election since 1980 (I voted for Ronald Reagan twice!). I assure every young citizen in Trumpy capitalization: IT WAS NOT LIKE THIS. This is a tragic global storm. It too shall pass; but the full damage is yet unknown. We need the sun again.

Back When Patriotism Soared

Liza Minnelli's iconic stage presence stole the show at Giant's Stadium at the Liberty Gala on July 3, 1986. Forty years later, the moment is still considered one of the most memorable live performances in television history.

The venue was New York City. The occasion was “Liberty Weekend” July 3-6, 1986. I was a cocky, party-hardy 25 years young, celebrating the Statue of Liberty’s centennial in the middle of the sizzle. Opening night was the “Liberty Gala” at Giant’s Stadium, I stood electrified as Liza Minnelli belted “New York, New York.” The entire stadium roared, flags waving. Her iconic stage presence that evening is still considered one of the most memorable live performances in television history.

Then to a party boat for the main events in New York Harbor. There was an immense Naval review with battleships surrounded by party boats crammed on the Hudson River waterfront. I watched President Reagan aboard the USS Iowa, saw Lady Liberty relit, and witnessed one of the largest fireworks shows in history up to that time.

While every President honors Independence Day in different ways, one of the grandest celebrations of this anniversary took place in 1986 in conjunction with the centennial of the Statue of Liberty. President Reagan praised our closest allies and spoke positive about "a nation of immigrants."

It was a heady time. Yes, I was young, an idealist and the promise of my own future beamed bright. I believed then—deeply—in America’s promise. My patriotism soared higher than the fireworks that night.

I wish yall could have been there.

A Prayer for Liberty

This year, watching storms rage and politics corrode, that promise felt broken. Yet even now, I still pray we will find our way back.

Because I refuse to believe this moral fog is permanent. I refuse to accept that hate and corruption define us. Somewhere beneath the chaos, I know the country I once believed in still exists.

One day, the clouds will lift. The storms—natural and political—will pass. And when the sun returns, we can reclaim our honor and celebrate a true Liberty Day again.

That will be a day worth fireworks.

Amen