Fireworks and Beatlejuice

In my hometown of Methuen, MA, they had their Fourth of July celebration tonight. Last year they didn't have a celebration, as they were short of cash. This year they found the bucks and it was spectacular. The weather was perfect....sunny, warm but not hot....and definitely not freezing as it's been in other years. There were balloons and ice cream trucks and kids running around with glow necklaces. I brought a big, brown grocery bag full of home-made popcorn....reminiscent of my mother who used to do that very same thing whenever we went to the drive-in. Every year, they have the band Beatlejuice play a concert. Beatlejuice plays, as you can imagine, nothing but Beatles music. They played for almost four hours. And of course, since it's the Beatles, every song is a toe-tapping hit that you can't help singing along to. As the music plays, the skies get darker, the crowd gets bigger, and the anticipation grows. Finally, the fireworks begin and they are coordinated to music, which I love. I just lay back, listened to the music, watched the spectacular display and thought about how lucky I am to live in this country, where the sky lights up with fireworks and not bombs....where kids can run around and play and eat ice cream and popcorn until they're sick...then go home and be tucked into a nice comfortable bed. God Bless America.