On July 4, 1776, 13 colonies represented the start of a new, independent nation. What began then continues to evolve, even shape-shift into realities banal as well as incomprehensibly good, and in ways, unexpected. So, some 250 years later, what comes to mind not only about our Declaration of Independence, but of ideals, perceptions and attitudes which–in some form or another–shaped your own thinking?
I think of 1776 as the “Big Bang” of powerful, humanitarian thinking and risk-taking, of finding strength with purpose and reason, of the surfeit of loss and regret and the weight of forbearance. What comes to mind is this spectrum of the human experience, that for each individual in these United States, carries levels of clarity and disillusion, of relief and anxiety.
In January 1776, the British born & an American Founding Father Thomas Paine published his pamphlet, Common Sense. Take a chance and read it, certainly over a cup of tea [or ice coffee, water and so on]. His words were clear and to the point. It had clarity that many could understand and feel. This timeless publication was the comet which ignited the spirit of a nation yet to be. Study Paine’s writing, and you can feel his sense of what a genuine human being should be. Many of our rights, freedoms and choices begin with you. Having the freedom to choose is our most inalienable right. It is the single most important key that unlocks paths to our rights, the pursuits that make us happy, and the freedom to make choices of our own accord.
Some 67 years later, Charles Dickens wrote arguably one of the most stirring novels about the human experience and the choices we make. A Christmas Carol is as much a story about Christmas as it is a story of becoming thoughtful person. One can not be solely attuned to the finer things in life. I’m sure you remember Jacob Marlowe’s moment of clarity and purpose, an epiphany that’s arrived too late for Mr. Marlowe:
“But you were always a good man of business, Jacob,” faltered Scrooge, who now began to apply this to himself.
“Business!” cried the Ghost, wringing its hands again. “Mankind was my business. The common welfare was my business; charity, mercy, forbearance, and benevolence, were, all, my business. The dealings of my trade were but a drop of water in the comprehensive ocean of my business!” —A Christmas Carol
So then, who in 2026 will be the catalyst that creates something extraordinary for the benefit of all living things on this earth?
Carlo Centeno 