My Dearest Katie,
You are my first born and I will love you
always. As my parents did for me, their parents did for them
and your other ancestors did for their children for nearly
the last 400 years, I want to pass on to you a sacred trust.
It is a trust that is interwoven through every part of the
foundation of this nation we call the United States of America.
It is my desire that you cherish this trust, as I have, and
pass it down to your children so that it never is forgotten.
First and foremost, always remember that
you come from a family and heritage that is special. Some
of your ancestors took great risks to come to this land at
a time in which many with similar ideals, dreams and intentions
did not even survive the voyage. Quite a few of your ancestors
conquered a frontier and started a whole new culture that
was unlike any other before it in the history of humanity.
Still more of your ancestors fought, bled
and sometimes died to earn the freedom to give our unique
American culture a formal structure. They founded this nation.
Since then, many more of those with whom you share blood links
have taken part in repelling many and every attempt to disturb
or alter the precepts that keep this nation great.
The challenges to hold onto this "American
Kernel" have always come to us. Keeping this seed has
been accomplished solely through the determination of the
members of your family and thousands of other families who
cherish similar American ancestral accomplishments. It is
important for you to always hold fast to your heritage: please
see that this collective set of memories and accomplishments
is carried forth. It is my deepest desire that you do this.
Never let anyone tell you in absolute terms
what America is or is not. They will most certainly be wrong
and they probably will have their own agendas that do not
"mesh" with the things to which your forefathers
dedicated their lives. I know that you will find a conceptual
"America" for yourself and that it may differ from
what I tell you in some instances, but I hope that you will
always hold on fast to most of the things that I pass into
your care.
So, what is America?
America is and should always be self-sufficient.
Never agree with anyone who says that we, as a nation, need
"help" from others to accomplish anything. Any such
claim will with near certainty carry with it either an excuse
solely to gain profit or an insidious means to undermine your
country. America did not get where it is by being "needy."
It got here by being perseverant and inventive in overcoming
obstacles. Early on, we did accept assistance from other nations,
but we did so with a most wary eye.
America is dogmatic about itself,
perhaps more so than any other nation. Many others mistake
our confidence for arrogance. Sometimes we have to live with
that because their assumptions are understandable when viewed
from foreign perspectives.
Our founders spent much time being concerned
about and warned us repeatedly to be wary of alien influences,
both domestic and far-flung, that would often attempt to undermine
or erase the American Kernel. You will grow up and live in
an age in which this threat will, perhaps, be greater than
any other.
Regardless of what any prevalent "proponents
of the moment" might say, this nation was founded
under the unwavering belief that its rise was ordained by
God. Yes, the founding fathers took great pains to
assure that its people could never be compelled by the Federal
Government to be members of any particular denomination. But
they most certainly made it clear to the first American citizens,
who had to be convinced that a Democratic Republic was the
proper form of government, that the hand of Providence,
in the Christian sense, was behind it all. Those who would
completely remove the notion of God from our society and institutions
will always be wrong and usually they will be dangerous.
None of what I have written to this point
is to suggest that we are not flexible. Even our Constitution
was intended to be somewhat malleable. But with that
malleability comes an inherent fragility that gives rise to
and encourages nearly every single threat against which we
must protect ourselves. Most certainly, the American
Kernel is capable of being lost, buried or forgotten;
should this happen, this land will just as certainly not be
"America" any more. I urge you to vigorously oppose
anything you see that appears to be taking us down any such
path.
With the same certainty expressed in what
I have written so far, please know that America is
capable of being wrong; we must pray that we are always
quick to acknowledge our errors. Speak out just as loudly
and be just as active when we are wrong as when we are right!
Most importantly, please know that you can
never really be wrong in this world if you always follow
your heart and consider your heritage. It is a lesson
that has served me well; the times in which I have made my
most regrettable mistakes are those in which I have neglected
to pay attention to the ethics, mores and values passed down
to me by a whole bunch of great people and minds from whom
you descended.
Love,
Dad
March 30, 2003 |
