Life Can Be Like Fireworks on the Fourth of July



Fireworks from "Fourth on Flagler" over the Intracoastal.

The Fourth of July is always an important time of remembrance for our country. For this year's Fourth of July holiday, I saw a spectacular  fireworks show at the "Fourth on Flagler" event in downtown West Palm Beach. The show was above the Intracoastal along Flagler Drive, right in front of the PBA campus.  

According to the website of The Massachusetts Historical Society, on July 3, 1776, John Adams wrote the following in a letter to his wife Abigail regarding the celebration of Independence Day:  
"It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward forevermore."

Seeing the illuminations or fireworks is my favorite part of the holiday. As I watched the show with a group of friends, I thought about how my life has been like a bunch of fireworks in the sky -- each role I have in my life is like each individual firework.  

Lately, I have been thinking about how to juggle life as a student, daughter and sister, friend, an employee, a young woman, and life as a Christian.  And in the juggling, some of my friendships started to diminish, it was frustrating to see them fall apart.  Luckily, I was able to get together with those friends for the fireworks show, and we regained momentum. 

All of these roles that "light up my life" are each like the different fireworks, which lit up the sky on the Fourth of July in colors of blue, white, green and red.  Ultimately, it takes a lot of planning for a fireworks show to look good, and it takes just as much time, if not more, to organize my life for it to turn out good, as well.  Additionally, even though each individual firework looks good in the sky on its own, together, they create an amazing show. As much as I would like to focus on being perfect in one role of my life, I remind myself the different roles I have keep me well rounded.

I know that a lot of planning for the fireworks in downtown allowed the thousands of people in attendance to enjoy a spectacular event. Although everything in my life does not seem to add up all the time, just like how it's possible for the fireworks go off at the wrong time, I know with a little practice God will help my life come together like a beautiful illumination.