It is the fourth of July and the 240^th anniversary of the independence of the United States. I look back on my life and try to imagine who I would be and how completely different my world would be if the colonies were just irritated with the high taxes and British soldiers lining the street, rather than being infuriated and fighting back against the injustices they faced.

The founding fathers were incredible because they cared very little for themselves; they cared for the future generations. Every single day that they chose to speak out against the British government was a day that they put themselves into more and more risk. They risked being killed in battle, of being punished through drawing and quartering and other horrible forms of execution, and facing complete humiliation if they failed at creating a new country that they dreamed of so desperately. I am awed every single time I see an American flag, every time I hear the National Anthem, every time I would pass the Lexington Battle Green on my way to high school, and any other time I’m reminded of the country I have been blessed enough to have been born into. The thought of what all those men and women did for our freedom is astonishing to me. Yet it is so easy to take advantage of these rights, to forget about how blessed we are to live in a country that allows us to be free.

The 2016 election is approaching and this is a time in which we must hold on to our rights stronger than any other time. This is the time in which we must ask ourselves, would the founding fathers respect how I am deciding to vote? Does my opinions in politics coincide with the morals this country is based on? Am I doing everything I possibly can to preserve the solid foundation on which the United States has built upon?