Happy Independence Day, US of A!

A picture I took in 2003 at an Air Show here in Alaska.

Meaning of the red, white and blue colors of the Great Seal of the United States:

"The colors of the pales (the vertical stripes) are those used in the flag of the United States of America; White signifies purity and innocence, Red, hardiness & valour, and Blue, the color of the Chief (the broad band above the stripes) signifies vigilance, perseverance & justice." - Charles Thompson, Secretary of the Continental Congress, 1782.

There is not an official designation or meaning for the colors of the Stars and Stripes. According to legend, George Washington said:

"The stars were taken from the sky, the red from the British colors, and the white stripes signified the secession from the home country."

The name "Old Glory" comes from 1831. Captain William Driver, a shipmaster from Salem, Massachusetts, exclaimed, "Old Glory! when friends presented him with a 24-starred flag as it unfurled in the ocean breeze.

During this day, unfortunately we are at war in Iraq. I hope that you will remember to pray for our troops now, on our Independence Day and the rest of the time they have to be there. The enemy that they stand against would love to wreck havoc in this land of ours as they do in Iraq now - terrorists. Let's be vigilant here at home too as this enemy, I believe, may be living right here and right next door to many of us.

I did a search on what each color means just for fun and came up with these lists of what we have come to think of when we observe these colors:

Red Stimulating. Hot. Cupid. Devil. Red carpet. Red light. Stop sign. Communism. Purity. Joy. Celebration. Red letter day. Red herring. In the red. Red flag. Fire. Blood. Energy. War. Danger. Passion. Desire. Love. Warmth. Red rose.

White Light. Goodness. Innocence. Purity. Virginity. Perfection. Safety. Cleanliness. Positive. Faith. Snow. Angels. Hospital. Sterility. Good guys. Whitewash. Whiteout. White flag. White lightning. White elephant. White knuckle. White as the driven snow. White sale. White list. White knight. Pearly white. White daisy.

Blue Sky. Sea. Depth. Stability. Trust. Loyalty. Wisdom. Confidence. Intelligence. Faith. Truth. Heaven. Calming. Tranquility. Boy. Sadness. True blue. Out of the blue. Blue ribbon. Blue blood. The Blues. Baby blues. Feeling blue. Blue Monday. Singing the blues. Into the blue. Forget-me-nots.

4th of July Fun:

Cut a star in one snip! 5-Pointed Star suggested to be used on the US flag by Betsy Ross.

I wish that all men, all over the world could be free.

May God bless You, America.

I went to visit Millie. She was sitting quite comfortably in a chair. It was so good to see her and talk to her again. She had both of her eyes open for a short time while I was there. I got to help the nurse put her back into her bed and get her comfortable there before I went back home. She's been hospitalized for 188 days today.