And I'm proud to be an American....

     I started off my fourth week in WashingFUN, DC with a three-day weekend. The holiday that was being celebrated in ArlingFUN was my mom's 29th birthday, but the holiday that was being celebrated everywhere else in the country was Memorial Day. (Don't worry mom, I celebrated both! With an emphasis on your birthday, of course.)  I went to The Arlington National Cemetery on Monday for Memorial Day. I figured if I couldn't be in the REAL Arlington (in Texas) for my mom's birthday, than the OTHER Arlington (in Virginia) would have to do.
     Anyways... I felt pretty Patriotic being in Washington, DC on Memorial Day. To celebrate Gracie, Austin, and I (#UAinDC) went to see the changing of the guard at the Arlington National Cemetery. I had seen it before in High School, but I felt like I could appreciate it more now since I am so much older and wiser. Also, it was Memorial Day so that made it kind of special.
     After leaving the cemetery, we proceeded to go see the National Archives. We saw the Declaration of Independence, The Constitution, and The Bill of Rights. It was so awesome to see American history first hand. What am I saying? This whole town is American history first hand, but seeing those documents really sealed the deal. When I walked out of the National Archives, I told the police officer that I felt much more American after seeing all those things than when I walked into the building twenty minutes earlier. The only thing that would have really put the cherry on top would have been if we had gone to see the flag at the American History Museum that Frances Scott Key looked at whenever he wrote the Star Spangled Banner--too bad I have already seen that! (Why didn't I go again you ask? I am trying to make the most of my time in DC and I didn't want any repeats, duh! Also, because I just now thought of that as I was writing this.)
     As I was trying to think about what I should title this post, I went through many possibilities. Party in the USA, ROCK in the USA, My Country 'Tis of Thee, God Bless America, This is My Country, You're a Grand Ole Flag, Yankee Doodle, The Stars and Stripes Forever.... But I finally settle on "And I'm proud to be an American..." Okay, okay. I'll admit it. I decided on that title and then did some Googling to come up with the rest of those title options. You would have never know that if I hadn't told you though, right? So since I have been in DC, I have felt more American than ever before. I feel super patriotic. I no longer thing that the north is bad. I no longer think that the south will rise again. I no longer think that Texas should secede from the nation just because we can. Okay, well not really... I love Texas still. I still think that we are the greatest state in the Union, and that we should secede just for the heck of it. Okay well back on topic... I think that a combination of my patriotic Sunday and the past three weeks here have made me really proud of where I come from. Of course, America has its flaws. Every country does; however, I don't care, I love America! We seriously live in the best country ever, and I am proud to be an American!

God Bless & Roll Tide y'all!