I am not sure if you know this, but for 3 years of my life, I lived in the suburbs of Philadelphia. Not only did I live close to a very historical city in the US, no I also lived close to Valley Forge national park. Our teachers at school underlined how lucky we were, as at least when it came to American history, we didn’t have a hard time imagining the places mentioned in the books, we knew them! {and for those we didn’t know, we went to on field trips (Williamsburg, Gettysburg…)}.
So here is my little memory of the 4th of July 2003:
12 years ago my family went to downtown Philadelphia for the 4th of July parade, it was the last one we attend before we headed back to Europe. It was a hot day (I guess the similarity in the weather helps my memory come back), I was a teen, thinking about impressing and what not….
My sister was wearing American flags in her hair, the tiny ones we (probably) once bought at the Betsy Ross house. Her hairdo caught the attention of an intern working for the Philadelphia Inquire, she asked if it were ok to take my sister’s picture, and took note of her name. In the next edition of the Inquire, on the page dedicated to the 4th of July parade, there was my sister. It was a big picture, her head taken from the back so everyone could see her hair decorated with flags, all of the other photographs were small. And well we were all proud, a girl German in the US about to leave for France was the image of Philadelphia’s Independence day in 2003.
Happy 4th of July! ~ Solveig
What a wonderful story 🙂 Thanks for sharing.
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🙂 thank you!
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Such a sweet memory 🙂
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Love this story, Solveig! Perfect for today.
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Thank you Evelyne!
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It’s the 4th as I read this, super hot and dry here, and fireworks going off and making us jump every time. Your story was a nice break from the chaos. Your sister’s picture seems both ironic and perfect. What a great memory.
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I am glad you enjoyed the story. I think no one realised that the girl in the picture wasn’t American, but I think it was a great way to end a 3 year stay for my sister.
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Lovely thoughts! You put a smile on my face with this sweet post. Thank you! 😀
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Thank you 😀
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And you are welcome
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