I grew up in the group of youngsters known as Baby Boomers. My father who served in the army in the waning years of World War II was a history buff whose parlor trick was naming the Presidents of the United States in order from first to most recent and vice versa. My mother often spoke of her love of this country which was reinforced by her immigrant father. All of her brothers also served during World War II, some in the army others in the navy. Our family vacation trips always included stops at historic sites and I grew up hearing stories about Abraham Lincoln and Franklin Roosevelt. I still smile when I think of how emotional my mother became whenever she heard America the Beautiful. Eventually my foray into learning about my ancestry would reveal that my kin fought in the American Revolution and my great grandfather was a Lieutenant in the Union Army during the Civil War. 

My parents taught me to be patriotic and proud of my country in spite of its many flaws. My teachers instructed me with honesty and showed me how to think critically about any issue. I have always believed that what is best about our nation has been its ability to change and rectify past injustices. Mostly I believed that our country was a haven for people like my grandparents who fled Eastern Europe in search of a place where they would be free to work toward a better future for themselves and their children. My mother helped me understand that there was great prejudice hurled at them even in the USA, but what mattered most was that they were nonetheless allowed to express their own beliefs and to prosper in ways that would have been denied them in the old country, especially after Russia created the Soviet Union. 

I was taught to face even difficult truths in history by both my father and my teachers. The adults asserted that a good citizen of any country has to be willing to admit to wrongs committed by the state and then be willing to right those wrongs. I was quite proud of my mother who wrote a research paper in the late sixties detailing the problems associated with the Vietnam War. She came to the conclusion that the citizens of the United States had often been mislead about what was actually happening there. She grieved for the soldiers who did not even know what was happening behind the curtain of secrecy in Washington D. C. Her ultimate resolution was that the war had been a grave mistake that had led us down a treacherous pathway. Her professor who was a conservative politician boldy congratulated her on a well conceived and executed argument and gave her an A+ for a grade. 

I suppose that my background made me a patriot who is more than willing to talk about the many horrific mistakes that have been made in the name of our nation, including the war between states that ultimately broke the chains of slavery that had so wrongly kept humans in bondage for economic gain. I think that our country has been at its best when we have been courageous enough to face our flaws with honesty. It’s always difficult to admit imperfections. We humans attempt to cover them all time but when they actually harm others they eventually result in turmoil. Humans can take only so much mistreatment before they finally push back. Often the concept of doing things the way we always have becomes untenable and changes occur. 

My family history is one of forward thinking, not looking back. We are not mired in clinging to traditions that are outmoded or unfair. I celebrate my grandchildren who are already blazing trials for the betterment of not just the United States, but the entire world. They understand that we are presently in a kind of rut, a ditch from which we must rise, not by denying progress but by seizing it. They advocate for the rights of woman that are still to be achieved, the preservation of the planet, the securing of democracy and justice for all. They are as dedicated as my father and my uncles were during World War II and as emotional about our freedoms as my mother always was. They have embraced the diversity of our nation without reservations for they see the melding of differing cultures and ideas as a strengthening force, not one that diminishes our greatness as people. 

Some of my peers joke that I have always been a bit of a hippy, a free thinker with beliefs that verge on idealism rather than reality. I am willing to admit that I dream big when it comes to politics. I refuse to accept the status quo when there are other possibilities that will nudge our country just a bit closer to the perfection that some try to pretend that we already have. The calculus of change tells us that we can move infinitely closer and closer to the approximations of universal freedom if we are willing to move forward. 

As a teacher and lifelong learner I fully understand that there is always something new to consider, to unravel. Our human journey should represent an arc of progress and freedom, not a regression into old ways that denigrate groups and plant fears in our hearts. I have witnessed the transformation of the children of immigrants who speak little or no English into bilingual citizens who serve as doctors, professors, teachers, lawyers, soldiers, good neighbors in a only one generation. I see beautiful babies conceived from different races smiling with a radiance that must please God. Ours should not be a longing or concern to be a nations of WASPs. If we are to be the shining city on the hill that we wish to be, we must be a nation of diversity and inclusion that allows everyone to thrive. 

This is what i know to be true. I am an American and a patriot who sees the future as bright only if we are willing to embrace honesty about our past and inclusiveness in our future. Turning back the clock is moving in the wrong direction. Tomorrow beckons and hopefully we will answer its call.