land of the free

This past weekend, I was on the other side of the airport. Usually, when I'm at the Philadelphia airport, I'm the exhausted traveler returning from an international flight, wrestling my luggage down the runway and anxiously scanning the crowd for the familiar faces of my family. But on Sunday, it was my turn to be on the "family" side of the runway, as I waited to pick up a good friend who was returning from an international flight.

Her flight was delayed, so I found myself a comfortable seat in the International Arrivals Hall and waited for her flight to land. Typically the tired traveler, I usually run through that hall as quickly as possible, find my family, and finally go home! Sunday was different. I had TIME. So I sat and read my book... but I also found myself overwhelmed by my surroundings and I had to stop just to take it all in. I love airports, but I was especially struck by this one. The International Arrivals Hall where I was sitting was built with an amazingly high vaulted ceiling that just attracts all kinds of sunlight. It was built to highlight and celebrate freedom, and you can tell. All over the walls are quotes from the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. One wall in particular is dedicated just to signatures... signatures of all of the "signers" of the Declaration of Independence. There was John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, John Hancock... and a million others that I didn't know. Life, Liberty, the Pursuit of Happiness are scribbled on another of the walls. It's a sobering... and inspiring... place to be. And it's just an airport! But sitting in that huge room, surrounded by so many reminders of American heritage... I felt like I was a part of something so much greater and bigger than myself.

I found myself sitting there and talking to Jesus. Our heritage is so rich... we have so much and we've been blessed beyond measure. We are free! Not everyone in the world can say that. I realized that I take it for granted all of the time.

I need to be reminded of where we came from. I want to visit Philadelphia more often and experience the history there and continue to be inspired by the men and women who knew what they believed and stood and FOUGHT for it... even in the face of great difficulty and opposition. Hundreds of years later, I am reaping the benefits of their choices. I'm inspired by their strength and courage, and I'm thankful for the freedom we have because of it. I pray that it continues for a LONG time.