Patriot's Day Reflections

Patriot's Day, for the uninitiated, is the anniversary of the day the day the first shots were fired at Lexington and Concord. Although it's celebrated on the third day in April, the actual event occurred on April 19, 1775...234 years ago today.

I sit here in my kitchen, 16 miles west of Lexington Green, enjoying the freedoms that were purchased when the farmers and townspeople of Littleton, Acton, Bedford, Lexington, Concord, and all the other small towns in the area, marched to meet the British on the April morning. Their goal was simple, to be able to live their lives in peace, free from government making decisions for them. The consequences of their outrage have affected almost every citizen of the plant over the last two centuries. That's not what they were thinking of that morning, however...it wasn't about a grand dream, or building a world super power...it was about being left alone to live their lives in peace and, hopefully, prosperity.

Individuals coming together because they worried about their families and their future, standing their ground, and taking courageous actions - changed the world.

So for me, the "take away" from Patriot's Day this year is this: Courage.