Of course, as a British transplant I shouldn’t be celebrating the Fourth of July. If you don’t know, this is the date when, in 1776, the thirteen colonies declared independence from Great Britain. South Carolina, where we are, was one of the original thirteen colonies.
But as we were here, we thought we should join in the festivities – and it was a truly exhausting day. First up, a procession through the local neighbourhood (we skipped the early morning 5k run) culminating in the national anthem, a reading of the declaration of independence, and the pledge of allegiance. We processed in a decorated golf cart – I don’t think we won the award for most pimped golf cart, but there’s always next year.
The most uplifting thing about the morning was a gentleman called Adam Gorlitsky, who finished the 5k run despite being paralysed from the waist down, using a re-walk exoskeleton. No mean feat, even more so given the heat and humidity. (Here‘s his website, if you are interested.)
Following the procession, it was already getting way too hot, so we decided to throw ourselves into the river to cool off. One of the great things about the area we live in is that there is a boat dock where you can jump into the creek. Given that the tide was out, it was a good 10ft from the pavilion to the water, but that certainly didn’t seem to phase Alice, or Charlie.
It reminded me a little bit of when I was younger and used to climb up to the top diving board after my swimming lesson. I’d walk out to the end, thinking “You can really do it this time, Chris”. Then I’d look down – and decide that actually I’d be better off going back down the ladder.
After the dock, we obviously hadn’t spent enough time in the water, so headed off to the swimming pool for an hour or so. And after that, we somehow spontaneously ended up at our friends’ house over the road, drinking cocktails and eating pulled pork sliders whilst the children – again – went in the pool. Fireworks? Did I mention the fireworks? By the time the day finished, we were pooped – and I thought it was meant to be a holiday…
What I wanted to say when I started this blog was that the US really goes out of its way to celebrate on its special days. And this makes me a bit sad about the UK. There are so many amazing holidays in the British Isles, often with their origins lost in the mists of time, but often I feel like us Brits – particularly Londoners – are embarrassed to celebrate them. So, England – dance around that Maypole! Celebrate St George’s Day! Don’t be shy!
South of the Mason-Dixon line 