Freedom and Liberty: It Only Takes One

Together, always embroiled in constant battles for existence, are Freedom and Liberty. They fight, as brothers in arms, in every human being, struggling to attain or perpetuate their existence. They are akin to a tape worm, wriggling it's way into our guts, starving out all other emotions until this one worm has eaten all it can eat and is the only thing left in our being that is hungry for survival. We, as host to them, must speak out, changing the things that oppress us. Should we let ourselves be oppressed, the worm will eat up more of it's host, until there is nothing left to feed upon, but hopelessness and defeat.

They are more than just mere words, when one thinks of how people have fought and died to obtain them. They are more than a concept, when one remembers the sacrifices that have been made, enabling otherwise enslaved people to achieve autonomy from their oppressors. Freedom and Liberty should not live only in the minds of men, but reside also in their hearts and souls and actions. We must want them not only for ourselves, but for our brethren across the globe. It should not be for kings or presidents to decide if we are free and independent - it should be the utmost right of every person, no matter their station, to live a free and liberated life.

The United States of America began as an experiment in emancipation. Once called the New World, where puritans fled to escape their King, a new world is exactly what they wished for. A new place, ungoverned by any tyrant, where no one would tell them what to do. They hoped to be out of the reach of the long arm of the King of England, but that was not so, he reached them even over the Great Water, and it would take a revolution to accomplish the greatest right a human being can know - sovereignty. As Francis Bacon put it in his essay "History", "Every revolution was first a thought in one man's mind, and when the same thought occurs to another man, it is the key to that era." It only takes one person to want freedom and liberty, and it only takes that one person to encourage others to want and demand the same for themselves.

Imagine yourself standing alone on the shores of some distant beach, where a great storm is raging. When the tide comes in, you'll feel the water rush past, and it's a struggle, but you can stand tall. That is freedom. But when the tide recedes, it takes with it the sand beneath your feet and you will fall, that is living without freedom. Now imagine that you are not alone. Your family, friends and even strangers stand on that shore with you. When they see the giant waves, some may not want to struggle, they know the tide will go back out, taking with it the sand beneath their feet. Some may want to back up, to where the land is firmer, because they are afraid of falling, and disappearing with the tide. It will only take one person to make the others realize how liberated they will feel if they fight the strength of the tide to knock them down. So encouraged are the others, that they lock arms and help balance each other when the threat of falling is imminent. It only takes one to make the others believe that the tides will come and go, and seas will sometimes be rough, but if you stand together united, you will always stand tall.

In so many countries across this planet, these fundamental rights elude populations of human beings. Why are their lives considered less deserving of freedom and liberty than ours? We all free and liberated people must stand up with the weak and oppressed who no longer have the will to fight for it themselves. Their oppressors have stripped them of that will, eroding any confidence these people had in themselves to fight and win. If we don't stand behind them, and be a champion of success for their cause - would they give up? Would we stand by and watch? We stand free in our free land and say, "My ancestors fought for freedom - why can't they?" They have tried, but failed because of the violent intentions of those that wish to keep them subjugated. They want to taste the sweet nectar of freedom - they know what they are missing, but they are afraid of being unseccessfull - only to become more enslaved by those they should be able to depend on. That internal battle for Liberty and Freedom rages on within them, but they are not yet ready to believe in themselves that they can take those rights for themselves from their leaders. In the words of William Wallace, "It's all for nothing, if you don't have freedom." They are afraid to fight for it, not gain it, and lose much more in the struggle. We must all lock arms with them, and help them stand tall.

It is up to us, who live freely, to convince them not to give up fighting. We have to assure them that we know it isn't easy, but it is worth it. Every loss of life in this epic quest was worth it, and the ground they breathed their last breath upon is hallowed ground. We owe thanks to past generations for their ultimate sacrifice, so that we should live a free existence. Also, we should always keep their struggles, and the struggles of those who we know are still not free in this world, at the forefront of our thoughts.