America

My 9 year grandson has been hearing all the stuff about the economy and how people are out of jobs and how tight money is and all that goes with the recession we are in. Yesterday, he was asking me what is so great about living in America when things are so terrible.

Maybe he is not old enough to hear this at school or maybe it's just that we - the adults in his life - have a tendency to complain about life rather than celebrate it. So I was able to talk to him about the freedom we have: how we vote and the government leadership can change without guns; how we can go to any church - or not go at all - without fear of arrest or harassment; how we can live anywhere we want - we can move at will; how we can work where we want, study what we want in college, choose our career. And he said so?

Nathan has never been to another country or studied the history of other countries. He does not yet know that those things we take so much for granted are not available to everyone in the world.

I am so grateful to be an American; that is one of the greatest blessings in my life from God. I want my grandchildren to be proud and grateful to live in this wonderful country. Of course America is not perfect but I really believe it is the best there is on this planet.