Happy Birthday

Have fun when talking about the country’s history

By Pastor David Bowen Standing Stones Community Church Standing Stones Christian Academy

Happy birthday, America! At 244 years old, do you think she is showing her age? When you look around the world and study lifestyles and living conditions of much of the world’s population, it becomes crystal clear what a blessing it is to live in America. Like anything run by man, our nation is not perfect; it has flaws. But as we spend this month celebrating America’s birthday, how do we teach our kids about the good and about their future responsibilities? Even the youngest of kids understand the concept of having a birthday.

I know, using the “H” word (history), can be intimidating, but it doesn’t have to be. It can be a lot of fun. For example, do your kids know the world’s tallest roller coaster, with its 418-foot drop, is Kingda Ka, located at Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson, New Jersey? Do they know the exact middle of the country is Castle Rock, South Dakota? Get a map; check it out. Do they know that for a long time the only state that grew coffee was Hawaii? (Now, California and Georgia are also trying.) However, Mount Waialeale in Hawaii still lays claim to be the wettest place on the whole earth, with more than 373 inches of rain a year.

Do your kids know the first United States capital was in New York City, then it was moved to Philadelphia before it arrived at its present location in Washington, D.C.? Let me challenge you to take history a little deeper. Take it to the personal level. There are so many storylines that reveal the sacrifices and agony men and women faced so we can have the nation we have today.

A theatric musical called “1776” dramatizes the efforts of John Adams as he tried to persuade his colleagues to sign the Declaration of Independence and vote for American independence. In fact, YouTube provides a full production of 1776. Again, this was an award-winning musical written by Sherman Edwards and based on a book by Peter Stone. Musicals are fun to watch. What a way to learn about Congress and the Declaration of Independence. It has a lot of humor in it as well.

YouTube also provides an hour-and-ahalf made-for-TV movie called “The Crossing.” It’s about Christmas in 1776 and the miracle at Trenton. If you watch this musical or this movie, have some fun and spend time afterward learning the popular music from that era, or if you really want to go all out, look at the wardrobe and try recreating some of those outfits!

Take some time and look at the architecture and how people lived. What did school look like? The one-room schoolhouse is a lesson of its own. Look at the way clothes had to be made and washed; understand why we still have sayings such as “the whole 9 yards.” Look at how food had to be bought (grocery stores did not open until 1919). Try cooking meals the way Americans did in 1776. Our modern technology takes for granted how chores are done, and technology may even remove some of the understanding that families had to work together and help each other. Neighbor was for neighbor; friends were like family.

If you want to take it to the next level, become a detective and research together why the bald eagle, the Liberty Bell and the Statue of Liberty are important symbols to our nation.

Have fun celebrating our nation’s birthday!