The 4th of July--Independence Day--is one of my more favorite holidays. I like my family, so what could be more fun than throwing some food on the grill (um, a veggie burger and tofudog for me, please!), drinking beer (one of the only occasions on which I will actually drink beer, and then it's gotta be Yueng-Ling), and chatting while we watch the fireworks? Answer: not much.

Yesterday was possibly my last 4th of July to be spent in the States. Now that I have my CR departure date firmly set (December 28th), I am seeing everything as a "last". Last Mother's Day: check! Last birthday: check! Last Father's Day: check! Now the 4th of July is checked off, as well. I don't have that many more "lasts", and I'm beginning to feel twinges of nostalgia for holidays past and holidays future.

I know I'm ready to leave. I've been waiting to go for so many years, and I'm incredibly excited to walk on Costa Rican soil, breathe in the Costa Rican air, and stuff myself silly with gallo pinto. But as the saying goes, we don't know what we miss until it's gone. Things are going; they're leaving me. And I will miss them.

Life is a journey, and it's our job to learn a little every step of the way. I guess what I'm learning is that the United States isn't completely devoid of culture. My family has been in the States since before we were the USA. I'm mostly German and Irish, but I don't have a shred of German or Irish tradition in me. Well okay, I eat pretzels and I like to drink. But I think that's a Philly thing. Hehe.

I grew up in a very Jewish area, and I observed all of my friends' traditions. Judaism is the religion, but being Jewish is a culture. They had it, I didn't. When I went to Costa Rica and Brazil, I observed two more cultures, steeped in their own, unique traditions. I wondered where mine were: was I, being 100% generic American, completely lacking in any traditions of my own?

Up until just a few months ago, my answer was a resounding "yes". My traditions were not German, or Irish, or Jewish, or Costa Rican, or Brazilian; they were just plain, old, boring traditions that you read about in every kids' book. But I think I was wrong. Being an American is unique in its own right. There are things to be proud of, things to celebrate. [We did beat those goddamn redcoats!] I've had many white Christmases. I've fallen asleep after stuffing myself with Thanksgiving turkey. I've celebrated the beginning of summer by partying my ass off at the [Jersey] shore on Memorial Day weekend. And Americans really know how to get down with the birthday parties.

I don't really know where I'm going with this. I guess I just wanted to express, in writing, that I do kind of like my country. Next time Bush decides to invade a country (or ignore the Constitution, or open his big mouth, or lie, or...) and I feel like I want to dig a hole and bury myself for shame, maybe I can look back on this entry and realize that being an American is about more than what our president does. It's about who we are as a people, where we've come from, and how we celebrate the beauty that is life.

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Posted by: Marty at July 6, 2006 08:11 AM

Posted by: Erin at July 6, 2006 08:55 AM