As today is July 4th, I thought I would wake up this morning and spend some time to myself in light our my my country's declaration of independence. So, I did the one thing I know I can always do to feel at peace and clear my thoughts . . . I went for a run.
As I was running, I would say 早上好 (zao an), "good morning," to the locals I ran by on campus. On my run, I began to think about what it means to be an American. Well, at least what it means to me. Being an American I feel has two core meanings: Being a Pioneer/Innovative andTolerance. However, I feel that today these meanings are becoming blurred by arrogance, ignorance, and laziness. Sure, I believe ignorance exists everywhere when people are not familiar with the "abnormal," but can we really define normal outside of what we choose to surround ourselves with (or what we are forced or have no choice to be surrounded by)? Anyways, I digress.
1. Being and Pioneer/Innovative: Going back to being an American, today marks the 235th birthday of the red, white, and blue. Wow! Think of all the accomplishments we have made in just that short amount of time. If you ask me, I would say this is because of the fact that we are historically pioneers. When the colonies started, families would leave their comfortable little homes and sail close to 3500 miles across an unpredictable ocean in search for a better life. Talk about courage and faith. Another example, when the rush out west began, families once again would pack up from their comfortable homes and ride up to another 3000 miles across unexplored land in search of a better life. These people didn't have any experience of what they may encounter. They just had an idea and they learned along the way. They innovated in order to achieve their needs and to solve the problems they faced. Some certainly failed, but others certainly achieved and continued to pioneer.
2. Tolerance: Before I begin with this meaning, let me preface with the fact that I admit there has been many times America has shown intolerance . . . many. I would agree that there are certain things that should not be tolerated, such as, anything that inflicts on founding principles. Yet, as a whole, being an American has shown me tolerance (today some may be surprised by that). To explain, let me ask you a question. What is the United States of America? Well, it is a nation of 50 individual states with different state laws, different values, and different communities. Yet, it is it is even more than that. America is a nation of people. . . a nation of immigrants with different backgrounds, different beliefs, different traditions, and different appearances. Although we all may not agree, we should be able to tolerate the fact that other people have the right to be free . . . the right to not be just like us. I am not saying we have to agree, but at least give a mutual respect ("tolerance") for each other’s freedom. In fact, I asked a new Taiwanese friend the other day, "What they thought of when they thought about America." My new friend didn't say Hollywood, football, or even McDonald's. He said, "a place with many types of people." It made me smile, for I thought that was a rather powerful answer from a foreigner. I mean he could have said loud, rude tourists, etc. Sometimes it takes an outside perspective to bring you back to the way you should look at yourself.
With all that said, I feel that today those meanings are slipping. For instance, where is our pioneering innovative, and hard working spirit to get us out of this recession? Where is our tolerance of people who live amongst us and work to provide for their families? I know it is still there. . . rooted deep in our core. It is our history and who we are. But have we become so comfortable that we are afraid to take chances like the pioneers of our past took. Now I am not speaking for everyone, but if anything I feel the term "I'm an American" has more or less become a saying that means "I don't have to listen to you" or "I'm not going to do that." Is this what we want to become? If so, than we have a very long road ahead of us before turning anything around (this is one of those things we should not tolerate and pioneer through).
So, as the sun soon will rise on this 235th year of our beloved country, what do you want being an American to mean to you? For me, I am proud to be an American because of things we have stood for and I choose to have tolerance and be a pioneer. Yet, I will not speak for the others for that is not the kind of America I represent. For those who are reading this, on this Independence Day I encourage you to show tolerance today and to start pioneering through something in your life. For at the end of the day, what kind of American do you want to be?
Happy 4th of July!
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