Happy 4th of July

Happy 4th!
Since moving to CA (yes, all of you folks back east warned me about this), I have had so much exposure to the "left" side of the political spectrum. Although I am not as involved as I should be, I do try to keep abreast of what's going on in the world. So on this Independence Day, I am not quite sure how to feel about being an American. Yes, I love my freedom, but no, I don't feel good about the state of our world, and I have so much sadness for what we have done as a nation to the rest of the world. I am not going to preach or get on a soapbox here, but I will pray today for peace around the world. I hope in my heart that our nation and especially our leaders figure out soon that we aren't the only ones here on the planet.
Those are my thoughts for the day.
And if you want some very interesting food for thought, take a few minutes to read the blog today of Rice Freeman-Zachary, an altered-clothing artist whose work I have recently discovered, and who I really admire. Wow, does she have some powerful commentary today about the work of women artists...how we, as women, tend to always go inside for inspiration, rather than looking outside at the world around us. And how women tend to limit themselves to the confines of what's inside, rather than growing as artists by being open to the world around them. Very, very interesting....and so incredibly true.
It's so connected to the things I have been reading about and thinking about lately, related to metaphysics and the energy in this world. How we are all (whether human, dog, piece of clothing, rock) made up of the same particles of energy, and how we carry and transmit that energy when we move about in the world. How if we emanate negative thoughts (energy), we are only poisening the world around us with negativity. Just by using negative words and thinking negative things, we inhibit the positive energy inside and around us.
So on a positive note, may you have a wonderful holiday full of sunshine and happiness. Send love into the world. And God Bless not just America, but all of the people in the world.