We've officially entered the peak week of national flag waving season in the U.S. It begins on Memorial Day when people put little flags on the graves of the people they loved, especially the people who died as soldiers. This week culminates in the Fourth of July, a day of fervent flag waving at parades and picnics from coast to coast.
Here's what I've been thinking: If flags attract the windhorse, and if the windhorse takes prayers from flags up to the upper world, then what are we praying for on the Fourth of July? Let's see ... the stars on the blue field are very nice. Stars are always good, I think, but the stripes present quite a problem. The white stripes represent the thirteen original colonies, while the red stripes represent the blood shed for independence from Great Britain.
Our ritual on the Fourth goes like this: get drunk, eat charred flesh, then wave a flag with bloody stripes while igniting explosives.
Hmmm.
What do you think the Beings in the upper world make of this ritual? Can you imagine? All I can say is YIKES.
10 comments:
We do a "True Patriot's Party" fundraiser for AFSC--there's lots of veggie fare, Women of the Drum, kids games and water balloons and prayers for peace.
Most everything is donated. People wear pins saying, "don't, don't, don't, don't bomb Iran."
It is a heavily Obama crowd and the conversations are enlightened.
I usually recite the Preamble to the Declaration of Independence.
It is a very nice way to spend four hours--I spend considerably more than that and raise lots of money for AFSC programs for peace.
I imagine they say, "Oh, look, the savages are at it again."
And they're right! :)
Interesting post. I have linked to this at The DC Feed.
We are really a very primitive society, despite what we might think!
Dennis agrees with Steve!!!
I just figured out where this was taken as I drove by Union Station tonight.
Intangible Arts agrees with Dennis!!!
As long as we're guessing, I think the Beings would say, "Oh dear, they want us to bring destructive forces to bear on their empire. Why oh why are they so self destructive?"
Then they cluck their tongues, shake their heads, and send in a natural disaster.
But maybe they just look at us and think, "Aren't they adorable!" My guess is that's closer to "the truth" than my first guess.
some wonderful (bhutanese) prayer flags currently on the mall in your beautiful town, expect you've checked them out!
Not yet. I'll head down right after the 4th. The Bhutanese guys are so cool. Happy.
I want that.
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