. . . that all men are created equal.
The 4th of July is upon us and we are busy, scurrying, cleaning the house, tackling the outside, getting ready for the 4th!
I love the 4th of July. Independence Day. Parades, fireworks, food, family, and friends.
Independence.
Anyone who knows me knows my love of American history. How we came to be and the heroes who brought us through. Washington and Adams, farmers and scholars, free men and slaves. Betsy Ross.
Betsy Ross. The woman credited with sewing our first flag. A brave thing to do in a time of civil disobedience. An act of treason.
No one truly knows if Betsy Ross made the first flag. We do know she was an upholsterer in Philadelphia who knew George Washington and, whether or not she sewed the first flag, she likely sewed others as well as uniforms for the troops.
Betsy Ross is a symbol to me of the sacrifices and pluck of the women of the American Revolution.
Click on flag for a better look.
I found this at a craft show some years ago. The craftsperson told me that in some country schools, children would learn the words to the Declaration of Independence by first writing them on the white lines of old flags. They would then sew the words on, like a sampler. I don’t know if this is what was actually done, but, found it plausible and liked the idea of learning the words by writing them, then sewing them, then hanging them in such a way. I brought one home and we hung it, just where I thought it should go from the very first moment I saw it, on a half wall between our kitchen and dining area. It could be seen and read each and every time we sat down to eat or do homework, sign report cards or address wedding invitations. It became a fabric of our lives as it rested in an unexpected spot. I like the unexpected in life.
The framed flag now hangs on a wall in our family room here on the cutoff. Folks visit us, from all walks of life and from places near and far, and they invariably walk up
to our sampler, which is simple and frayed under glass, and look closely to see the stitches and then slowly read the words . . .
Here’s something fun to try. It is told that George Washington wanted the stars on the flag to be six-sided. Betsy thought otherwise and suggested a five pointed star. Told five pointed stars would be too hard to make, she picked up a scissors, made a few folds, and in one single snip proved to the noted gentleman that he was mistaken. The rest, as they say, is history!
Directions are here.
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