I don’t get Twitter. I didn’t have a handle until a couple years ago, registered only to follow local weather and school alerts. Recently I’ve been spending more time inside the belly of this beast. Maybe I’m too old or I’ve curated my feed incorrectly, but as far as I can tell, 90 percent of Twitter is people complaining and calling out what’s wrong with our country. It’s exhausting, circular, indulgent, occasionally informative and thought-provoking. 

Yet for some reason, much of our news comes from and to this online forum.

This July 4th, here is what I want to say to America: 

We are so much more than Twitter. We are still beautiful.

You know those polls they do – “Do you believe America’s best days are behind her? Do you think things are getting better or worse?” – which most people answer in the negative? I wonder about the correlation between the negative answers and the amount of time spent intaking news and social media. I wonder how much time is spent in a city/at a desk/thinking versus experiencing the outdoors. I know I would answer negatively after every Twitter scroll and newscast.

We just returned from central California, and after seeing the wild beauty of the Sierras, I would answer with full optimism! 

This July 4th, remember this: If all you hear is the mean and ugly, you are getting a partial, partisan, myopic, intellectual view of our country. May I encourage you to get off that screen and out of that city and look for something better. It is out there. 

America is so much more than cable news. America is the boy scout troop in Mr. Green’s barn by the river. She’s the single mom fostering another child, and the grandfather greeting at Walmart, and the children chalk-drawing on the street, and the Rotary Club members placing flags at gravesites. This America far outnumbers the political pundits and algorithms created to divide us.

America’s best idea is not social media; it’s the National Parks System. My annual NPS pass sums it up: “America the Beautiful.”

America is so much more than Capitol Hill. America is the Grand Canyon and Old Faithful.

We are more than the Supreme Court and all our infighting. We are the land of Smoky Mountains and natural hot springs, of redwood forests and Gulf stream waters, of potluck dinners and generational ties.

Lest I sound completely naive and privileged (which I admit, I am) – yes, we are quite broken, and much needs to be repaired. But we’ve had a lot of hard days lately. It would do our weary hearts good to take some time off from focusing on the brokenness and immerse ourselves in what is good about us. We are broken AND we’re beautiful and one does not negate the other.

Surely as there are ugly places in America, there are many more that are beautiful.

Surely as there are mean people in America, there are many more who are kind.

America is still beautiful. Some days it takes a lot of faith to believe it. But I’ve seen it with my own eyes… I’ve seen beautiful places and they remind me that there are many more beautiful people and ideas and actions than there are ugly ones. The beauty restores my soul and strengthens my belief that if we all continue to work together to seek the peace and prosperity of this country, our best days are absolutely yet to come. I hope these images remind you of our beauty. Please share your own in the comments!

This Independence Day, let’s celebrate what’s right with our nation. We have something beautiful going, America, and I love us.