The Price of Freedom

I have red, white, and blue blood running through my veins. I am as American as apple pie. I love the flag and all it stands for. I am passionate about freedom. I am crazy about the land of the free and the brave, and I am so grateful to live here.

America has its share of problems, but they are all first class. There are some things I would like to change, but I certainly don’t want to change my address. I love to visit other places, but this is where I want to live.

July is a great month to celebrate freedom and to honor the brave men and women who have given the gift of liberty. Can we ever thank them enough?

What is the price of freedom? Many have given their lives. Children have given their fathers. Women have given their sweethearts. The road to freedom is littered with the casualties of war and the casualties of apathy. May we never be casual about our freedom or the cost of liberty. May we never forget those who paid the price.

Each of us can choose to make a difference. Each of us can serve in the glorious cause of freedom. We can make a difference by supporting good causes. We can make a difference by voting for good men and women who will be guardians of our homes and our communities. We can make a difference by remembering all that is good in our country and working to change things that need changing.

We can make a difference by being good citizens, good neighbors, good patriots. We can make a difference by serving others. We can stand up for what is right in our homes and in our communities. We can strengthen our country by doing what is right and helping others to make honorable choices.

The cost of freedom is high; but consider the cost of no freedom. What would you sacrifice, what would you pay, to lead the life you’re living? Though must of us will never shed blood for the cause of freedom, surely we can give a small token.

What shall we give?

Linda Garner

They Shall Call me the Giver of Clean Clothing

That will be my new superhero name. I love superheroes, their mighty powers, their incredibly good-looking looks, and let’s not forget their unbelievably noble stances (fists on hips, legs slightly angled with the wind blowing their super capes behind them).

I decided I shall be called the Giver of Clean Clothing. I shall fly from place to place delivering folded bundles of freshly laundered clothing, smelling of lavender and sea breezes (how do they capture the sea’s breeze? Magic?)

But I regress…superheroes, who thinks of those beings? Word Girl (created by Dorothea Gillim. Airs on PBS Kids) cracks me up with her charming use of words. I love when she fights Toby and his giant robots with her beloved sidekick, Captain Huggyface.

Then there is The Tick, written by Ben Edlund. A family favorite, I must confess. With his mighty war-cry, “Spoooon,” he attacks his foe with his beloved moth sidekick, Arthur. With enemies as The Bomber-what-bombs-at-midnight, and Chairface, how can one get bored?


"I'm Karri the BABYSITTTER." *Twitching eye* Oh, such great quotes from The Incredibles by Pixar. I mean, who thinks of that?

So, I’ve learned how to get writing ideas from my writing classes. I’ve listened to authors tell their stories of dreams, riding on trains, eating bad food, all for a great idea that has taken them places.

Unique ideas are fair and few between (at least right now for me). I tried to write down what I dreamed about last night, but I had the flu and it was kind of gross, if you ask me.

So, as I fold my second load of laundry for the night and breathe in the scent of warm flowers, I shall dream of flying…flying and calling out my mighty war cry, “LINT!”