Independence Day, also called the Fourth of July or July 4th, in the United States, is the annual celebration of nationhood. It commemorates the passage of the Declaration of Independence by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776.
One year later, on July 4,1977 , Philadelphia marked Independence Day by adjourning Congress and celebrating with bonfires, bells and fireworks. The custom eventually spread to other towns, both large and small, where the day was marked with processions, oratory, picnics , contests , games, military displays and fireworks. Observations throughout the nation became even more common at the end of the War of 1812 with Great Britain.
As Americans , we celebrate the founding of our nation and the freedom it promised. Thomas Jefferson's eloquently drafted freedoms of life, liberty and pursuit of happiness. However, freedom is more than the ability to pursue one's passion and desires to have a life of peace and prosperity. Freedom from the entanglements that cause mental anguish, trauma and brokenness of heart and spirit tends to cause more than blood, sweat and tears. Mental health freedom is a lifestyle, a mindset , an ongoing complex of thoughts and doings of various acts. to establish and maintain; and its worth it.
A prison of the mind and spirit that causes a person to have a lower level of functioning that affects every aspects of their lives is a prison with invisible bars, but a prison, nonetheless.
Fear, adversity, trauma, stressful conditions, sickness, etc. are complications of life that very few have the privilege of escaping. You live long enough, eventually you find yourself in a place in which you say to yourself " Life sucks sometimes."
However, if you will receive it, believe me when I say there's hope. Hope is what kept our forefathers pushing for a nation free from oppression of Great Britain. Hope is what kept our civil rights leaders marching for equal rights for minorities and people of color. and hope is what every person living with , dealing with and fighting the darkness of mental illness continuous to strive for... FREEDOM.
Steal your mind back.. Fight for it! You can get free and Think free. Start today!
Here are three simple steps you can take.
Let go of the past. It served to bring you to this point but it does not have to hold you hostage unless you let it. Break the shackles of the past.
Don't believe lies. Lies about who others think you are or are not. Instead start telling yourself the truth. For example, you are good enough, smart enough, pretty enough, handsome enough, cool enough, creative enough.. you get my drift. Then just do it. If you can dream it, you can be it.
Trust in the one who gives you true freedom that can never be taken. Jesus said " Whom the Sons set free, is free indeed", John 8:36. He can and he will free you if you want it.
Let Freedom Ring, HAPPY 4th and HAPPY MENTAL HEALTH FREEDOM!
Reference:
(Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopedia (2021, December 20). July. Encyclopedia Britannica ( https://www.britannica.com/topic/July)
https://www.pbs.org/a- capitol- fourth/history/history - independence -day/
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