Emma Zayer

Today is my grandmother's 85th birthday and I've just got a few minutes to steal away before taking her to lunch with my mom. I was actually planning to write about another recent birthday...that of the United States.

Specifically, what made me feel very patriotic on July 4th, and not our "Star Spangled Banner" telephone ring in the kitchen. (Yes, the phone really plays that -- I wonder who programmed that as a preset.)

No, I'm talking about fireworks.



(Looks like dust in this small photo, but that's actually fireworks over FDR Drive in Manhattan.)










America's founders were rebels. They broke away from the most powerful empire in the world. They put faith in a rag-tag bunch of civilians banded together against the world's premier military. They built the foundation for a nation with no real precedent and laid the groundwork for a democracy that, while imperfect, offers protection, freedom and prosperity for its citizens not enjoyed in many places around the world.

So I think America's founders would have taken a chance with the dangers of fireworks. In fact, they probably would have said 'fireworks, heck yeah!' (Unlike in New York, one of the states where fireworks are illegal. But the founders also used leeches to cure illness so let's not take all their advice.) According to Wikipedia, fireworks did in fact accompany the Independence Day celebration of 1777 and George Washington's inauguration. I am, of course, verifying that with other sources...but I need to get running now.

Oh, and I'm not planning to set off my own fireworks anytime soon. I'll just enjoy them on TV, in the car with my family chasing them around Long Island or standing with friends in Stuyvesant town where the above photo was taken.