As a kid, the Fourth of July was pretty much all about one thing: fireworks. Oh, there were parades down the main drag on Vashon Island, musical performances in Ober Park and the requisite barbecues on Dilworth Point, but weeks before the big day, my eyes would glaze over as I envisioned just what the rockets’ red glare would look like that year.
Of course, my brothers and I would take on whatever menial tasks necessary to earn a few bucks so we could buy our own, spending the week or so before July 4 shooting bottle rockets into the Puget Sound, creating smoke bomb volcanoes out of sand and sticking firecrackers and M-80s under everything and anything that wasn’t nailed down and blowing them sky high. Good times.
The big show came as the younger kids huddled for warmth around a bright bonfire, having had their fill of hotdogs and s’mores, as fireworks from our own arsenal and those of dozens of families on both sides of the water made their brief mark on the night sky. On clearer Fourths, we could see the profession pyrotechnics in Seattle as we watched colorful reflections over the Sound.
Awareness of crooked politics, corporate greed, environmental problems and the like were still years down the road, and so the innocence and awe I experienced every July 4 was almost a tangible thing.
Nowadays, I often shake my head at the daily headlines and my fist at those “young punks” who insist on ruining my good night’s sleep by having pre-Fourth fun in the greater Hansville area. And while it’s easy for me to justify my attitude, I’ve got to learn to take a cue from my younger self and just let it slide.
Boom!
Boom!
Boom! No problem, right?
The Fourth of July has arrived after all. It’s a big day for North Kitsap and a huge day for our country.
It’s a chance for us all to look forward to the future and reflect on the past as we celebrate something that tends to get lost in the shuffle — our independence. Freedom is what defines us as a country, what unites us a people.
So whether you’re throwing a barbecue, hanging out with friends, attending a pancake breakfast, parade or fireworks show, working or just relaxing with your family at home, remember that you are not alone.
You’re part of something greater, or rather something great: America.
So let the kids next door, political strife, corporations and your environmental concerns about global warming “slide” for a day and just enjoy the Fourth for all it’s worth. Take a stroll, light off a bottle rocket or 20 (safely, of course) and above all, try to relax.
The problems of the world will be there tomorrow and a little procrastination isn’t going to do the ozone in overnight.
Take a cue from a young Joe Irwin on this grand day and wear a smile as proudly as you’d wave Old Glory in the Kingston or Keyport parade. You’ll feel better and your happiness and pride will be infectious.
No matter your age, be a kid today. Innocent and full of awe. Happy Independence Day.
JOE IRWIN
Editor
