It was two hundred, thirty-nine years ago that the Age of Enlightenment gave birth to The Great American Experiment, known as Democracy.  That birth was midwifed by a group of wealthy, white men, who courageously risked their lives and their wealth by signing the Declaration of Independence.  This single piece of paper gave us the Big Freedoms, which were later amplified by the Bill of Rights or first ten amendments to the Constitution.

These Big Freedoms enable “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”  Big Freedoms are well-known and include (1) the right to own private property, (2) the right to vote. (3) freedom of Assembly, (4) freedom of Speech, (5) freedom of the Press, and (6) freedom of Religion.

It is customary on Independence Day to give thanks for our Big Freedoms, which are also the wellspring, from which flow the many, many Small Freedoms that shape our lives.  Small Freedoms include (1) the right to marry or not, (2) the right to travel or relocate anywhere or not, (3) the right to get educated or not, (4) the right to choose a career or change careers or do nothing at all, and (5) the right to have personal priorities.

One of my personal priorities is avoiding excessive structure.  One reason I volunteered for Special Forces was to avoid the more highly-structured regular Army.  The reason I retired from banking and started my own financial planning practice was to reduce structure in my life.  Now, I am free to work my own hours, helping my clients as I think best, and have never been more happy in my life.  I am very thankful that my individual “pursuit of happiness” was successful and appreciate those wealthy, white men who delivered the Big Freedoms, allowing me to enjoy the Small Freedoms.

This is not a day about saluting veterans.  We have Veteran’s Day for that.  This is not a day to remember those who died for our Freedoms.  We have Memorial Day for that.  This is a day to give thanks for an idea, a radical notion at the time – The Great American Experiment –  and our many personal Freedoms that flow from it.