July 4th isn’t even here yet, not quite, and I’ve already heard a few fireworks being set off in my neighborhood… *sigh. My sigh is for several reasons:
- There is an ordinance against setting off fireworks within the city limits, yet people flagrantly just thumb their nose at the law and do it anyway. One has to wonder why, but who knows? I suppose when they were kids, things were different, laws were different. But now, they don’t seem to care who they cause distress to, and also, they don’t seem to care that the example they are setting for their children is not a good one.
- Setting fireworks off out of the blue can terrify animals, and possibly scare young children.
- There is also the risk of setting something on fire, or causing harm to a person.
But mainly this reason:
- When people do illegal fireworks in this fashion, it dishonors our Veterans… you know, the ones who fought to protect our freedom, the people we should honor the most on the 4th of July, because we wouldn’t be having any festivities at all without our freedom.
I think people should think about things like that before deciding to pursue an illegal activity such as setting fireworks off within a neighborhood that is within the city limits.
Last year there were loud fireworks going off all around us, which caused my youngest son a great deal of stress. My son is a Veteran; he served in Afghanistan, and was very nearly blown up when the enemy missiles hit the Mess Hall roof. Two other mothers did lose their sons that day, and I still tear up just thinking about all the senseless loss, and the horrors of war.
My son no longer likes, or appreciates, fireworks. When he hears those screaming rockets explode, he is right back in that Mess Hall, right back in the thick of that attack. He remembers it all… his friends crying for help, and not being allowed to help them, for he was trained to fight the enemy… so he had to go out of the Mess Hall and leave them in there, and do what he was trained to do. My heart breaks for him every 4th of July, because thoughtless people must get out their fireworks, and revert to childhood and set them off, lawful or not… and he has to deal with the PTSD and all the memories that the sound of explosions bring to the fore in his mind. Why don’t people realize how rude and disrespectful they are being?
I hope this year is better, although I don’t really expect it to be. How I wish I could just move my son out to the country, somewhere quiet and peaceful, especially on the 4th of July. Somewhere he wouldn’t have to stress, or remember that horrible day. I’ll keep working toward that goal. Meanwhile, the earplug companies have made another sale… *sigh.