JULY 3, 2020
The Declaration of Independence was signed on July 4, 1776. It said;
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness”.
The founding of America was then, a very novel idea in building a nation based on individual rights and freedom. A nation founded on the idea that man is inherently good and given freedom could/would live up to that good. A nation founded on the belief that all are created in the image of G-d. That we are all children of G-d. That given freedom, we could and would eventually have a country that lives up to and recognizes these “self-evident truths”.
Those who got freedom back then, were grateful. Yet it was not something that they were familiar with and had no real experience. They were an imperfect people given the freedom and opportunity based on the founding principles to grow and become a more “perfect union”. So began the journey in learning how to use their new freedom.
We were created with free will. The USA was created to be a land that gave us the opportunity to express our free will. With the freedom of free will, we can choose to elevate ourselves and become the person we were created to be. A unique person, with a unique purpose and mission for which we were each created. A mission that contributes to the benefit of all. A person who follows
“Love your fellow as yourself” (Leviticus 19;18).
“If I am not for myself, who will be for me. And if I am only for myself, of what good am I.” – Hillel, Ethics of fathers 1:14
Without these rights and freedom we could not pursue our dreams and our individual purpose. When we use that freedom to be who we are meant to be, to fulfill our unique purpose, America will be all that it’s meant to be and what it was created for. Without the freedom to fulfill our individual purpose, we will never get to a land fully defined by it’s founding principles.
What could be more gratifying for each of us to know that we chose, because we could, to use that freedom to reach our ultimate potential as human beings. To know that it came from you and not imposed on you. To look around us and see that all are enjoying “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness” To be truly United. It may take longer than we would like but freedom is the only way to get there.
If there are faults in America, it is not the fault of America. We are all still imperfect people.
A young child asks his parents on a long trip, “Are we there yet?”. The parent answers “no, not yet”. On our journey, we must constantly ask ourselves, “Am I there yet?”. Each of us is a work in process that can lead to progress. The closer we get, the closer we will be to the goal that America was founded on. We have made much progress, so let’s keep going, until the answer becomes, “yes, we are there”. Without freedom we will never get there!
To have the freedom to pursue and become our true selves is indeed something to be thankful for.
Our liberty should be celebrated everyday by using it for the good of all.
May we cherish, be grateful for, and protect those freedoms for many, many more years.
May we use our freedom to fulfill our greatest human potential.
HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY
God Bless America
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Please see link below of a video conversation that I had with Michael Matias of “20 Minute Leaders”. This is a very focused discussion on “maximizing enterprise value” and I would recommend for senior lenders, venture capital and their portfolio companies. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M86oYMFQbgo
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