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Happy Birthday, my fellow Americans! Time to celebrate. Set aside your political differences. Put down the protest signs. Wave the Stars and Stripes proudly. We are still the most privileged free land in the world and that's worth celebrating.
The American Revolution of 1776 resulted in the establishment of what we now call the United States of America. The colonists who took up arms and defeated the British forces had few advantages over their opponents. But they did have cannons.
However, during one of the bloodiest battles in Savannah, Georgia, 17 cannons sunk to the bottom of the Savannah River. These relics of the war went undiscovered for almost 240 years.
The cannons were hoisted from their silent, watery grave and have been restored to pristine conditions. They are now proudly on display in a museum in Georgia. If they could talk, what stories they could tell.
My only personal experience with cannons was during my childhood and our family's backyard on the Fourth of July. It was on that day that our dad would reach far into the back of his closet and pull out a worn cardboard box. We knew that box was off limits despite our constant curiosity about its contents.
Inside the box was a small replica of a wartime cannon of years gone by. I never really knew the origin of this treasure that my dad traditionally brought to our holiday picnics. We just knew that he took immense pride in having the cannon fire and exploding the air with its sound and scent of gun powder.
I can still hear our father's laughter after firing the cannon. It took some special care to keep the relic in working order. Other than a few railroad model layouts, I think the cannon was Dad's most prized toy of his adulthood.
We looked forward to that explosive sound to cap off an afternoon of picnicking around the oversized picnic table in the backyard. That performance was followed by a few of Dad's magic tricks and then sparklers to light up the night.
Dad's cannon holds a lot of memories of good, old-fashioned and patriotic Fourth of July celebrations. It might not have fought any battles nor had a hand in our independence, but it reminded us that this day was and is still very much worth celebrating.
Have a safe and happy celebration.
Heather Ziegler can be reached via email at hziegler@theintelligencer.net.