Happy birthday, America!
It looks like the weather will cooperate today and everyone can get in their cookouts, swimming parties, or just a day to relax and maybe take in a fireworks display in the evening.
The Fourth of July conjures up so many great memories with my family as a child as we would drive to see what seemed like hours of fireworks going off. When you’re a little tyke, 20 minutes felt like an hour.
We’d all pile into the car, head to our fireworks location, which usually differed each year, find a good spot, grab the folding chairs, put down a blanket and wait for the sun to go down to start the fireworks.
It was so much fun, and like any child, I never wanted the display to end. The grand finale is the best part, but it is such a let down because you knew the show was over.
I can’t remember the last time I saw a real fireworks display in person. I guess I’m just happy to sit in my easy chair and watching the displays from Boston or New York City.
I was never one for lighting my own firecrackers. As a matter of fact, I was a bit scared of me being careless and getting hurt. To this day I don’t like when neighbors set off fireworks.
Oh, we did sparklers and those little black things you put on the ground and light them up and they grow like a snake, but that was about it.
I wasn’t crazy about the sparklers because if you waited until it burned to the end, you could get your fingered burnt or sometimes the little sparkling flames would hit your arm while you were making circles in the air.
There wasn’t much you could do with a sparkler besides circles, stars, or writing your name in the air. It was boring when you’d light one and leave in the ground.
Then somewhere along the line, they came out with these supersized sparklers. They’re like two feet long. They would usually just fizzle out before they got to the end and then fall off.
Of course after playing with sparklers, when you closed your eyes, you could still see the sparkle that burned in your retina. That was fun.
Driving around Greater Pittston, or the Wyoming Valley for that matter, on the Fourth of July is pretty crazy. The entire valley is just filled with smoke from the fireworks.
If you even have the advantage of being at higher ground looking into the valley, you can see fireworks everywhere.
Driving over one of the two bridges that cross the Susquehanna River in Pittston or the 8th Street Bridge and looking down river is a wild scene.
In comparison to other countries, our nation being 245 years old is fairly young. The Kingdom of Sweden was founded on June 6, 1523, for example. The first ruling dynasty of China began over 4,000 years ago. So you see, the United States is just an adolescent.
Even though it’s safe to say we are a politically divided nation, there’s one thing I know for sure: We are all proud to be an American.
To this day, I still get choked up when I hear the national anthem. The anthem is only 1:50 in length on average, but sometimes it can feel so long, especially when you get recording artists that want to jazz it up instead of making it traditional.
Whatever your plans are today, I hope you enjoy your holiday today and a possible day off tomorrow for a nice three-day weekend.
A final goodbye was said to the West Pittston Salvation Army last Sunday, and you can read about it in my story in today’s edition.
I have covered several Catholic Church closings in Greater Pittston, and let me tell you, they were like attending a funeral. The finality of it all is really heavy especially for the older parishioners that were possibly baptized in that church, were married, and buried family members.
When a church closes, a big piece of people’s hearts goes with it.
We know the Salvation Army will come to your aid when there is a fire, a natural disaster, or making a child’s Christmas special. They’re all of that, but what many don’t realize is, it’s a ministry, and church is held each Sunday with a regular congregation.
The number of folks that attended the final closing of the West Pittston Salvation Army was low. Many from the congregation have moved on to other ministries and some of the faithful where there along with a few board members and friends.
Lts. Gavin and Holly Yeatts did their utmost best to make the service upbeat with hope and promise, but still tears were shed.
I admit, I felt guilty about the Salvation Army leaving West Pittston after 109 years, and I wished it could stay. The Salvation Army had other plans that included closing its doors for good.
The Yeatts are a great couple with a beautiful 2 year old daughter that could call West Pittston her hometown, and they have one more on the way.
They have been assigned to Pottsville, and I can only wish them the best.
Quote of the week
“Ignoring the red flags because you want to see the good in people could cost you later.”
Thoughts of the week
“The things you do for yourself are gone when you are gone, but the things you for others remain as your legacy.” – Kalu Ndukwe Kalu
Bumper stick
“The number one skill in life is not giving up.” – Bryant McGill
