Favorite Holiday

Soooo many choices but quite an easy one. My favorite holiday is the 4th of July. Independence Day.
Why? I am fascinated by history. I adore Thomas Jefferson. You have to appreciate the spirit of a group of people who were just like you and I, but possessed such a spirit and determination that it laid the foundation of a nation.
In 1776 Jefferson, Adams and Franklin wrote the Declaration of Independence (one of the most eloquent documents ever composed if I may throw that in!) in such a short time. They were just men. They were a lawyer (among other things-and believe me that profession did NOT hold the status that it does now), another lawyer, a printer/scientist-respectively. Not the type of people you'd expect to produce such a work of art and immortalize themselves as some of the greatest minds in history.
Then there were the battles. EVERYONE fought, not just the soldiers. In Baltimore, merchants chose to sink their own ships in in the harbor and lose their only source of income in order to prohibit the British ships from entering and getting close enough to take the city. It was a turning poing. Ft. McHenry is still a breathtaking site at sunset, but I imagine what Mr. F.S. Key felt when he penned our national anthem-waking on a ship, frantic to see if "What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming" was still visible at dawn. Did the Brits take the fort?
Now, I hate parades, and I can live without fireworks..but the SPIRIT of the day inspires and moves me. It makes me want to honor what so many men fought so valiantly for.