Maine is Patriotic, Right? The Most Patriotic in America, Right?

I think so. You do too, right?

With the 4^th of July coming up with it comes a survey about Patriotism in the Country.  And the survey rated each state's level of patriotism and ranked them.

Maine isn’t even in the Top 10. We’re at Number 15.

Still great, but still surprising.  The way they came up with the rankings was a combination of the number of veterans who come from each state. Also, the percentage of citizens who voted in the last federal election. Plus, the number of volunteers in the state per capita.

See why I’m so surprised. We lead in veterans. We lead in voting.

In the grand scheme of things, it doesn’t matter if we’re leading the survey or not.

Wouldn’t you agree that part of patriotism is feelings and not necessarily the showing of those feelings?

July 4^th is extremely important to me personally. But if I just stop by myself for a few minutes and think about why and what makes the country so special, how is that not patriotic. Do I have to proclaim it on social media or it’s not a fact?

The reason that the 4^th is important to me is that the 4^th of July was the date I emigrated to the U.S. My paperwork was finished a few days before, so I waited until the 4^th to legally enter the country and have the paperwork stamped on July 4^th.

I’m a Yankee Doodle Dandy.  I don’t remember the date of my becoming an American citizen.  But I’ll never forget the day I moved (legally) to the U.S. The 4^th of July.  Half a lifetime ago. But a day for me to be grateful for.

However, you spend the 4^th of July - BBQ. Picnic. Parade. Fireworks. Bangor waterfront for the Symphony free concert. Day trip. Beach. Vacation. Backyard with the family doesn’t matter. Hopefully, you can find even a couple of minutes of quiet time and reflect on how much this country actually means to us. Especially in the current times which has people bickering about everything.

Happy 4^th of July!