Happy 4th America
 

Reenactment of Gettysburg Darkest Days, Finest Hours - 2008 Photo Gallery

Footage of Reenactment YouTube

Gettysburg PA is unrecognizable July 3, 4 and 5...thousands of people come into the city to participant in or just stand on the hills and watch.

Thanks, Carolyn - I LOVE the 4th of July!

Here's a short essay I wrote on July 4, 2002, shortly after I met "the tribe" at my first PAN Forum; Carol's Carl died just 2 months later. Additional note: No '4th of Jul-Ivars" in Seattle this year; instead of having a big fireworks display, the Ivar's restaurants are giving the money to food banks (sign of the times); and you'll see why my forum name is indigogo if you read to the bottom!

Cheers!

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Today was my 20th July 4th on Port Susan Bay. As usual there were showers with sunbreaks, alternating cold and hot, parkas being shed when the sun appeared briefly before it went down. The crowd is older now, of course. Jenn Newland who once sat upon my lap as a toddler just bought her first house. Chuck Shigley the younger is now father to two year old Bailey. My own Elizabeth is off with her friends, a teenager too grown up to spend the fourth with Mom and the old folks.

The Shigley house remains cozy and comfortable despite the ravages of high tides, landslides, and earthquakes - solidly built and lovingly maintained by Annie and Chuck the elder. Boats bob at the dock, it is summer after all - even though a boat ride chills to the bone. Liz's flag cake with fresh strawberries and blueberries appears symbolically as the barbeque cools down and salads give way to dessert. Plates are piled high with "a little of each," and the coffee is poured for those who've had enough champagne.

Fireworks ring the bay as the sun disappears behind Camano Island. This is my favorite part of my favorite holiday. Not as grandly spectacular as the "4th of Jul-Ivars" in Seattle which is accompanied by the symphony. Instead it is a steady, lovely display of hundreds of gatherings of families and friends celebrating a day off from work to honor the country that has allowed them the opportunity to burn their dollars on quick bursts of colorful sparks and devices that explode just for fun. We are lucky to be Americans.

But this year is also different. I find myself to be increasingly disconnected with this life and these friends. Divorce, chronic illness, and job loss have changed my status and redefined me to a point of having little in common with these people that I love. The sting of loneliness sharpens as I sit among old friends and listen to their conversation about everyday experiences that seem exotic to one without good health and reliable income.

The road home is cloaked in smoke and all around the night sky is pierced by crackling fire. Going to my computer to check my email, I am rewarded with a message from a new friend, a PD friend, in Kentucky. "Hi Carey, Here's a slice of Fourth of July on Frogtown Rd. (the street we live on). Wish you could hear it too! Carol," along with pictures taken that night of their neighborhood fireworks. Their sky looks like our sky, filled with familiar sparkle and life.

My depression eases. It's good to have new friends to cherish along with the old. And maybe I'm more connected than I realized. In the words of the Indigo Girls (who I will see on the pier in Seattle twice next week), "it's only life after all - the less I seek the source for some definitive, the closer I am to fine." One day at a time.
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Great graphic and essay!
 

Thanks, Carolyn.

and Carey, beautiful writing (as usual).

I related to this: "My depression eases. It's good to have new friends to cherish along with the old. And maybe I'm more connected than I realized. In the words of the Indigo Girls (who I will see on the pier in Seattle twice next week), "it's only life after all - the less I seek the source for some definitive, the closer I am to fine." One day at a time."

I do not believe I would have ever recovered from my depression that hit shortly after I was forced into disability retirement, had it not been for the hndful of friends I found thru online communities. Thanks for bringing back good memories!
Peg

I danced in a 4th of July parade today and it was lots of fun. I joined a tap dancing class at a senior center after reading that dancing is good for PWP. Since I cannot walk for a whole parade route, I rode in a van that followed the other ladies, and got out when we danced. We did our short dance 6 times along the parade route. I was glad I could sit and rest in the van between each time we danced. I am glad I found such a nice dance class.

There are 2 pictures if you go to my profile. I couldn't get them to attach here.