Last night we decided to sit on my mom's roof while the night sky celebrated independence and freedom with color. Being slightly afraid of heights I chose to stay inside with my brother, Dar. He was feeling finished with social fun and so we watched our family watch the festivities. We all had the best seat in the house!
To our pleasant surprise the neighbors across the street decided to light some smaller (and noisy!) fireworks right on the street in-front of us. Cool! We didn't have to spend money or go anywhere to make the evening fascinating and exciting! I love that! Admittedly, I wondered what they would think of the fact that we were allowing the children to hang out singing and giggling on our roof. But, hey. If I can suggest letting go of judgments on my Facebook page and here in my blog, it's nice to also practice it in real life, right?
The universe must have heard my thoughts and decided to raise the stakes. Watching the kids and adults on the street I couldn't help but notice that the grown-ups were playing dangerously with the fireworks, and I was wishing they wouldn't. Their kids (and ours!) were watching and learning how to not be safe. So, as our kids sat on the roof thinking about the unsafe habits of our neighbors, I imagine our neighbors were thinking similar thoughts about our late night roof play.
The highlight of the evening was fun, singing, celebrating and togetherness. That other stuff was only a small dynamic. But an important one.
Independence and freedom are necessary. With them we can discover ourselves, share difference and make personal choices. And, like I say in my 'The Other Side of the Coin' post, they invite habits from others that we might not like or want. That's okay! That's actually wonderful! Use those moments to learn and share all about the beauty and challenges of freedom with your loved ones!
You don't have to sit out on your roof, or play with fire, to enjoy life and celebrate independence. But go ahead and talk about it freely with your loved ones.
I hope you had a wonderful July 4th friends!!!
Hugs, smiles and love!!!
