A Very Merry Jean Shepard 4th of July

I've been ruminating about the Fourth of July and why we love this holiday. Freedom, history, pageantry, ritual are the expected thoughts about the holiday. But I wonder if the real resonance about the holiday is the very celebration of our American Ordinariness. There's a lot of hoak mixed with the ordinary for this holiday--the plethora of Kraft recipes made with Cool Whip, Miracle Whip, Philly Cream Cheese (the list is just endless!) And let's not forget the annual special $5 t-shirt from Gap (although I traded-up to the $10 American Flag/Peace Symbol version this year).

Yes. In this year of great economic stress, we return to our backyards, beaches, front porches and parking lots to come together to celebrate and revel in our very American ordinariness. Garrison Keiler has talked about our love of American stories that profile the very ordinariness of our lives. I think Jean Shepherd may have captured this best in PBS' dramatization of his short story, "The Great American Fourth of July and Other Great Disasters." It's not available on DVD (I have a bootleg), but someone posted a nice clip on YouTube. You may recognize a very young Matt Dillon as the protagonist, Ralphie, and his father played by James Broderick (the real-life father of Mathew Broderick).

Happy Fourth!