My friend and I recently returned from a marvelous holiday… a cruise in the Baltic Region. The countries we visited are, for the most part, experiencing freedom and independence: Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, etc. However, the 20th Century history of the area (the Nazi and then the Communist invasions and take-overs — coupled with recent [2019] articles of Russian “mergers…” not to mention the Mainland Chinese fighting against democracy in Hong Kong) gives one pause.

It motivated me to think deeply about what the concept — FREEDOM — means. Each July 4th we celebrate our country’s independence… our freedom to govern ourselves: a freedom that not every country has. With that freedom comes the responsibility to guard and maintain it from generation to generation.

Like the poem below states, our freedom is something we must guard, and protect, and pass on intact. We must stay watchful, and perhaps even a little bit paranoid. It could slip away if, or as, we sleep.

FREEDOM

Freedom is not guaranteed to us
Without working for it day after day.
Keeping freedom a fact in our daily lives
Takes responsibility… (not meant as a cliche)

As Ronald Reagan so wisely declared,
“Freedom is never more than one generation away
From extinction.” That means we didn’t inherit
Any genes or blood type that would pave the way.

No, freedom must be fought for, and then protected,
And finally handed on to the next generation…
With the premise that they must carry the burden
Of protecting it for themselves to its next commemoration.

“Education unlocks the door to freedom.”
So said George Washington Carver, a learned man.
He understood the degree of responsibility
That comes with freedom. (Do the very best you can.)

Sandra Day O’Connor, the first female Supreme Court Judge
Stated these words which added to her legacy:
“The freedom to criticize judges and other public officials
Is necessary to a vibrant democracy.”

Abe Lincoln weighed in on the subject of freedom:
“America will never be destroyed from [without].”
No, it will come from within, if we allow special interests
To decide what is best, and if we sell ourselves out.

Pope John Paul warned of the pervading nationalism
That is being aggressively imposed in many forms. (Be leery!)
If we are tempted to adopt it as a truer freedom,
We may just be trading for a new form of slavery.

JFK said, “Conformity is the jailer of freedom
And the enemy of growth” (a thought most sage).
The secret to happiness is always freedom…
And the secret to freedom is courage.

George Washington said, “If the freedom of speech
Is taken away [from our rights],
Then dumb and silent we might be led
Like sheep to the slaughter.” (Resist with all your might!)

To be free is not merely to cast off one’s chains
But to live in a way that respects others’ independence.
None of us are free until all are out of bondage.
Respond to all dangers with loving intelligence.

The ultimate human freedom comes from these endowments:
Self-awareness; conscience; independent will; and imagination.
They give us the power to choose, to respond,
And to change… and become our own creation.

The word “vacation” had its origins between 1350 and 1400 and its original meaning was “freedom from obligations, leisure, release (from some activity or occupation).” The Latin root is vacate and from that the words vacate, vacation, vacancy and vacant are derived.

The Brits call it a “holiday,” not a “vacation.” Either way it’s an opportunity to journey within and meet your authentic self. G. K. Chesterton, a prolific writer of the 20th Century, described a holi.day (or vacation) as “a restoring thing which, by a blast of magic, turns a man into himself.”

And, as it is often said, wise people travel to discover themselves. Whether you travel near or far, it’s food for your soul.

VACATION

Vacations are medicine for the soul,
And usually require the need to vacate…
Travel is often the method to get away,
To reconnect with ourselves, and re-create.

The choices are many! So many places to go!
Find what brings you joy, and go there.
The world is a book, and if you don’t travel
You have only one page to share.

Doing nothing brings everything into perspective.
Rediscover your passions, your purpose, and plus…
Why do we travel? Not to escape life,
But so that life will not escape us!

The word “vacation” summarizes it all:
Resurrection, rebirth, reincarnation and re-sprout.
A holiday turns people into themselves.
Of this fact, there is no doubt!

Wherever you go, go with all your heart.
The energy expended gains you more than you give.
The bottom line? The message here?
Do not work more than you live!

As the expression goes, life is made up of little moments, not the chronological unfolding of minutes, hours, days, weeks, months or years that one lives. Those all seem to run together after awhile.

No, life is made up of special moments — moments that can be life-altering or life-changing, the memories of which stay forever in our minds, and sometimes change the way we look at things, which holds the possibility of changing the types of choices we make.

Though sometimes the fast pace of daily living causes us to miss those cherished moments, we realize that we need to slow it down enough that we can remember how precious it is to be alive, and to love.

A milestone birthday is a moment, to be sure. This month I celebrated one of those milestone birthdays, and have a poem to share as a result. It is found in one of my newest trio of books, MILESTONES*. Matter of fact, it is the lead-off poem.

AT EIGHTY

As an intro to MILESTONES, I thought it would be
Of interest to share memories from my diary.
And though I’m unique, my life’s much the same
As others who live through events and are still “in the game.”

There are wisdoms and thoughts I’d like to pass along,
And I sing them loudly, for they are my life’s song:
You can’t help getting older, but you don’t have to get old.
Keep your mind young and don’t always do what you’re told.

Becoming eighty is merely a matter of life and death.
I choose life, and I’ll live it to my very last breath.
In my dreams I’m never eighty years old.
My adventures as I sleep are marvelous to behold!

Now, granted, at eighty, my birthday suit needs pressing,
But as I look around I am happily processing
The knowledge I’ve accumulated throughout my years,
And the joys of sharing them now, without fears.

The biggest advantage of living to this age
Is the time to acquire people to love at each stage.
In my youth there were people of action and adventure;
The more physical the activity, the more excitement, to be sure.

And later I found friends who were seeking something more…
A reason for existence beyond “minding the store.”
What is my purpose? What does it all mean?
The questions were large. The answers unseen.

Time has a way of moving things along
Some answers came slowly and some poured headlong.
Enough to learn I must share what I know,
Starting with family, then others to follow.

It takes a long lifetime to grow young once more;
From birth through youth, to a full four score.
The advantage of living to 80 and more?
There’s more people to love, but who’s keeping score?

At 80,
Jessica Tandy won a Best Actress Oscar, Yuichiro Miura climbed Mt. Everest,
And Coco was still running Chanel. There’s life still to be lived!

*The other two books are GRATITUDE and TAPESTRY. They are all found on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and at your favorite book store (by order).