discover fire

I don’t read the news, because I know that anything actually important will make its way to me. I read my friend Ian’s blog today. After finishing it, and the connected articles, I felt sad and sick to my gut. I experienced overwhelming sadness for these events and all people involved, which reaches well beyond the borders of my country and Iraq and Afghanistan. After a few minutes, I felt happiness mixed in with my other emotions.

You see, I love being an American. Growing up in this country has ingrained the rights scribed in the first 10 Amendments into my core. I am also old enough to know that the Constitution is just a piece of paper. But really, it is just a piece of paper with words on it. Someone wrote the words a long time ago. We are all free to interpret the words as we wish, because that is what being an American is all about: being free.

The most beautiful thing about being American is that I have a choice. I’m the one who gets to choose whether or not I adhere to, love, obey, and stand for the rights prescribed to all citizens of this great nation. I’m the one who gets to grant someone the right to speak freely, the right to love who they wish, the right to practice whatever religion they wish, the right to stand up for something or someone. Someone else might have a different interpretation of those rights. Someone else might not agree with me. But I say that does not matter! For even if someone wants to believe they can revoke my rights as an American, even if someone destroys the Constitution and every copy of it, I say let them! I, and anyone else who holds the values as their own values, will always be free. We are born free, that is our birthright as Americans, and as Human Beings.

I understand that there is a lot of hate, and a lot of anger. We’ve all lost people we love. The planes crashing into the World Trade Center, destroying the World Trade Center, killing thousands of people on September 11, 2001 almost got me. I wish I was immune from hate, but I’m not. For a while I was upset, but then I realized that hate, retribution and wrath were what the terrorists wanted. They wanted to get my attention. They wanted me to be afraid. They wanted me to hate. I have this to say to each and every so called terrorist out there: you did get my attention, but I do not hate you. I will not hate you, and I will not be afraid. I still believe in the freedoms granted in the US Constitution, I even believe in those same freedoms for you, whoever you are and whatever your connections are. The war on terror has already ended with me. I forgive you, all of you.

- Jeremy Wayne Osborne, American