The Crosby Chronicles: America, Happy Fourth of July!
One of the nice things about living in Burbank is the free fireworks show the city puts on every 4th of July.
Watching fireworks is one of those peculiar mass public experiences that gets more meaningful as one ages.
When you’re a kid, fireworks are so exciting: all the brilliant color in the sky, all the flumes of smoke, all the loud booms. As you get older, as a way to show you’re “maturing,” you turn your back on things that are labeled childish such as the zoo, the circus, and fireworks. Then, when you get into your 20s, you realize how foolish you were to turn your back on all those fun experiences, so you allow yourself to enjoy them once again. And, if you have children, you can allow yourself even more years of pleasure.
I don’t know how many more July 4ths I have in my life, but I’m going to soak in every screamer and sparkler that I can.
America, Happy Fourth of July!
Brian Crosby is a teacher at Hoover High School and the author of Smart Kids, Bad Schools and The $100,000 Teacher. He can be reached at brian-crosby.com.
