july 4, 2020

This year our local firework displays have been cancelled. And we are not alone. 

There will be no official 4th of July firework display in Philadelphia this year.

The forecast for many of this year’s 4th of July weekend plans in Western North Carolina communities is looking relatively quiet and dark. The coronavirus pandemic has snuffed out all the public fireworks displays in the area.

Naples cancels Fourth of July parade and fireworks amid the pandemic.

All of Flagstaff, Arizona’s usual Independence Day events, including the parade, Lights on the Lawn, and Art in the Park, have been canceled.

Fair Saint Louis announced it is cancelling “America’s Biggest Birthday Party”

These headlines found in the papers across our nation indicate that missing out on the 4th of July festivities this year is a foregone conclusion. As we head into the weekend, a holiday that is arguably the most patriotic, the feelings about our country, our flag and our history are in flux. Hearty protests and quiet vigils have filled the streets of our biggest cities and our smallest towns and we are still reeling from a pandemic that is challenging our healthcare system and our economy. It might make some wonder if the 4th of July 2020 merits a celebration at all. 

Growing up, I spent summers on a small island in New York where we perched on itchy blankets and sandy towels, on a small piece of land that jutted out into Long Island Sound, to watch the fireworks. Swatting away the no-see-ums with sparklers, we celebrated the 4th, slightly sunburned from a day in the sun and ocean, watching our own display as well as ones in the distance being set off along the Connecticut and Rhode Island coasts. In those early days, it was less about country for me and more about the food, and the chance to be out past my bedtime with friends dressed in our finest Lilly Pulitzer, enjoying the shift from dusk into darkness, and waiting impatiently for the very first blast.

While raising our children, I adored our annual celebration of the 4th on or around the 4th , depending on where in the week the holiday fell. Although I was never one to fight over the way our children dressed, in honor of Independence Day, red, white, and blue were mandatory. There was always good food, good friends, patriotic music, and love of country and the men and women in uniform. The merriment was rarely without incident, though. I visited the emergency room on more than one occasion, once to repair a broken nose that I got tripping over a chair in the dark, a kid in each arm which gave me nothing to break my fall. When the kids were young, the finale was the incredible show of fireworks, complete with oohs and ahhs, but as they grew, the last blast seemed to indicate not the close, but the start, of their night. 

I love the 4th of July, a holiday that stirs up good, wholesome memories from my past, and as I have grown older, it has deepened my respect for our country and the many men and women who have protected our freedom. For a good friend, it is about all of this as well as her own birthday that she shares generously with our country. For school-age children, it’s the fact that summer vacation is almost halfway over by July 4th and that the return to school is inevitable. History buffs revel in the day that represents the Declaration of Independence and the birth of the United States of America as an independent nation. And for our two knotty-haired dogs, it is a slightly terrifyingly loud day - not that dissimilar from a good thunderstorm - that forces them underneath the bed into a safe harbor. 

Fireworks are designed to explode in a controlled way. A fuse is lit which starts the charge burning and ignites similar fuses that make the interesting parts of the firework burst once in the air. The explosion causes the firework to break apart which allows for the wondrous display of colors and loud booms. The sky will be bare of fireworks this weekend, but the fuse is lit, and maybe we will discover in the quiet, that it’s okay to break apart in order to become whole, and truly embrace the display of colors - not just the red white and blue - but all of the magnificent colors that make up our incredible country.

These past few months, we as a country have been through a lot, and I have learned many things in this time of COVID-19 - about myself, my loved ones, my community, and my country. I have learned that a goldfish can lose its color, that I actually like brussels sprouts, and that I can show up in little more than pajamas to pick up a car that is being serviced without anyone batting an eye. I have learned that in times of crisis, a community can truly come together. I have learned that even though in-person events, ceremonies, and services are cancelled, the people in our country have a way of showing up anyway. Americans may not be perfect, but we persevere and care. And we have learned to drag ourselves through and out of dark times. 

Let’s be clear, the 4th of July is not cancelled. It may look and sound different, but I know in my heart, we will celebrate with gusto because that is what Americans do and we will be back next year louder than ever.