made it in america

How I’ve spent the past few 4th of Julys: 1) on a plane home from Austria, 2) at the US Embassy Independence Day Celebration in Vienna, 3) seeing Jay-Z (and just barely not seeing Beyoncé) at a Hyde Park concert in London, and 4) running around Poland in an American flag shirt, asking people if they wanted to watch The Sandlot.  Needless to say, this year’s Fourth had a lot of living-up to do.
And living up, this year’s Fourth did.  I spent the holiday at a picture-perfect farmhouse in Arcadia, Oklahoma, where the food was plentiful and the fireworks were a little out of control, as they should be.  Let’s just say I kept my sunglasses on throughout the show – in spite of the fact that it was dark – for fear that shrapnel would somehow scratch my corneas.  I’m sure this was a very legitimate concern. 

The fireworks show ended with a grand finale involving our country’s national anthem, during which I asked my friend, Jenny, “Oh, great, am I about to get goosebumps?”.  I spent the remainder of the evening de-littering my hair of cardboard firework bits that had floated down from the still-smoky sky, dancing with sparklers as a playlist full of iconic summer songs blasted through the outdoor speakers, and cuddling with the family’s new puppy Gus (I pretend it's short for 'Gussell Westbrook').