We are the People of America,   A People bornOut of Liberty's struggle   For an America Of Freedom, Equality, and Justice. We are a People conceived in the belief   Of "freedom and justice for all" And in the right and duty    To "defend and protect." We are a People   Who've answeredThe call of freedom   For over two hundred years ...Shedding our blood   On a thousand battlefields. We are a People with hardihood ...   Both hardy...

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In the early hours of daybreak   As the rising sun gives birtthTo a new day,   I often behold that timeNot so long ago,   When every American Shared in the "prosperity and success"   Of the "American Dream". It was the Golden Age   Of America triumphant,A time of economic peace,   Social justice,A strong middle class ...   Prosperous, secure, and stable. It was a time of    Shared affluence,A time when everybody   Paid their fair share;When every youth's...

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Looks like we're on a patriotic track here, so will stay with it for a bit.  I mentioned a while ago that I'd be showcasing a couple of patriotic teaching moments.  One I already highlighted as having occurred during the Boston Pops 4th of July performance at the Esplanade.  You'll have to read it to find out about that patriotic teaching moment. The 2nd "teaching moment" was just something that a friend made me aware...

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As the plunder and profits of    failed politics fades another day into the anonymity    of wealth, power, and privilege, I see before me    in the evening twilight two people talking.    Edging closer, I hear one    confide to the other -   "Today I felt the frustration,    uncertainty and despair of this American Moment.   Today, I lived the hardship,    misery and stress of a proud industrious people   ...

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As a footnote to my previous post, Patriotic Teaching Moments, Part 1, and in honor of the 200th anniversary of Francis Scott Key's penning of The Star Spangled Banner, I thought I'd give a bit of the history of our National Anthem and provide the "lost verses" ... as information and for reflection. Francis Scott Key actually penned the poem that would become our National Anthem on September 13, 1814.  It was the War of...

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As I reflect back on "The days of summer" (evidenced by my last post re summer's shades of green and how I'm missing them), I continue to be struck by two profound "patriotic teaching moments".  One goes back to the very beginning of summer ... the heralding in of the season with the Boston Pops annual Fourth of July "fireworks spectacular".  This year, because of weather, it was aired on the 3rd and frankly, having...

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