What does it mean to be an American?
THE SPIRIT OF AMERICA
What does it mean to be an American? Although I have never seen a definition for the term, to
me being an American is something special. Being an American is something to be proud of. America in
the past had heroes; people to pattern our lives after. Americans are tough, honest, and brave.
Americans can be counted on to do what is right no matter what. Americans are independent, and with
our heads held high, we trust in God. America is the land of the free and the home of the brave; the
connection between the terms free and brave being distinguished.
Can terms like honest, brave, tough, religious, and patriotic still describe our culture? Is an
American still a man or woman of integrity? I believe that there are still pockets of true Americans
embedded in our land. However, as a whole it seems that we are lacking in the true American spirit.
The spirit of freedom has been traded for safety. The spirit of liberty has been eroded by socialistic
handouts. Happiness is mistaken for ease.
America used to raise her sons to be lions. Now they are taught to bury themselves in the
prairie dog holes of comfort. They think they are safe but they stick out like an ostrich with its head in
the sand, and look just as silly. These are my thoughts anyway. Can we turn our culture around? Am I
completely wrong?
What say you?
Rend Petersen
