Kay:
Hey, there Questers welcome back. We hope you’re feeling great today. It is July 5th, episode 391, and July 5th means that here in the US it is the day after Independence Day.
Shi:
Which means we’re going to bring you a slightly, still patriotic quote for you today for our international listeners. We know that you can relate to feeling pride from wherever you’re from. And yesterday we all celebrated, those of us here in America, our Independence Day and so we wanted to do a quote that was in homage to that. So, it comes from one of the super OG ladies, Betsy Ross, who tells us, “Stars on a field of blue; one for each colony; bars of red, for the blood of sacrifice; on a ground of white for love and peace.”
Kay:
Now, am I the only one just now realizing that the states are the colonies, and if that’s so, are we really just colonies? Yes.
Shi:
Well, we weren’t states when Betsy Ross was professing this quote here.
Kay:
Yes, indeed. But love the picture that she paints here and being able to hear where Betsy Ross’s thinking was, and the colors and the way that she designed the flag that we still fly today. In reading this quote, I couldn’t help but reflect on our own national anthem and in the part of our national anthem that says, “When the rocket’s red glare and the bombs bursting through air gave proof through the night that our flag was still there.” Our flag is the symbol of the continuity and the strength of our country even in the midst of bombs, flying, and rockets glaring.
Shi:
Kay and I were just reflecting on being proud Americans, but it’s easy to get lost in the things that you don’t like about a place, especially with what we know about what sells is that they’re the things that have tension and sizzle and spice and conflict are what sells. Our media industry has to be designed around making a profit because that’s the kind of economic system we’re in, which means we find ourselves getting fed a lot of images and stories about the things that are wrong in our world and our countries. We recently have been reminded of some of the right things and have been adding some dimension in that positive space too. When we were in Fredericksburg, Texas, we got to see the International Museum of the Pacific War Theater from World War II and that was very illuminating for both of us. As well as, you may probably definitely know if you are any kind of lengthy listener at all, that we are obsessed with Hamilton…
Kay:
Obsessed.
Shi:
…and you can’t help but watch Hamilton and have some pride in your soul stirred for what our country really has been founded on, how far it’s come, the obstacles it’s faced. It has definitely made some atrocious, ugly errors and has some dark paths and scars. But to see the scrapper story of the US come from an unlikely win in the civil war to an unlikely win in World War II to who we are today..It is truly something in history to be marveled at and so we were just having a little bit of appreciation for the fact that yes, there’s bad, but there’s also a lot to be proud of too.
Kay:
Yes, and waving Betsy Ross’ flag higher definitely makes us proud, and with her flag having such deep meaning let’s talk about this quote just a little bit. In Hamilton, one of our favorite things is that it really gets into demonstrating the sacrifice of the revolutionary war and really what was going on in our cessation from Great Britain and to become the United States of American independent space. She says, “Bars of red for the blood of sacrifice.” That’s not a joke. I mean, from the Native Americans whose lives were sacrificed upon the settlers coming to this land, to the people who died in the revolutionary war to the hundreds of thousands of Americans that died in the civil war fighting for our countries, ideals, and freedoms. The blood of sacrifice really rings true for our country in the ideals that we carry today.
Shi:
But that blood paying the price for what it is laid on the ground of which is that white for love and peace. Ultimately those values and ideals Kay, you just mentioned, come back to that. I think most of us as human beings, no matter what country we’re from, want to come back to that ground of love and peace. Maybe as we mature and get older and better, we won’t need so much blood to sacrifice to find that beautiful ground and be able to stand hand in hand with pride, to be human beings, no matter what country. So obviously we have an Independence Day Quest for you, but before we get to that, Kay, give us Betsy’s quote, one more time.
Kay:
“Stars on a field of blue; one for each colony; bars of red, for the blood of sacrifice; on a ground of white for love and peace.”
Shi:
Alright, real talk. We are up at mom and dad’s house, and we are probably still celebrating. So, your quest today is to celebrate alongside us, whatever freedoms you enjoy and whichever way you find appreciation and do that today. We’ll see you back here tomorrow. Now, are you ready? Say it along with us now.
Kay & Shi:
Let’s quest!
