The Partly Cloudy Patriot

The Partly Cloudy Patriot had me laughing out loud. I both admired and enjoyed the honesty within Sarah Vowell's voice. Vowell makes a good point in how the word "patriot" can often make people flinch. I went through a "patriotic" stage when I was younger. In elementary school, both before and after September 11th, I wanted everything red, white, and blue. When it was time to buy lucky pencils for my EOGs in 3rd grade, I wanted them to be American flag pencils. When I told Santa what I wanted for Christmas, it was socks with red white and blue stars on them. When I had a birthday party, I wanted it to be American themed, including jello resembling the American flag. When I got my first training bra, what was it? Red, white, and blue. I took what I thought to be "patriotism" to the extreme. I sincerely felt patriotic, inside and out. It was like something within the inner core of my 10 year old body that couldn't help but love my country. Looking back, I wonder if I just really liked the colors red, white, and blue. Or if I just thought that's what you did in the south; because, as I got older and continue to do so, I am realizing there is so much more to being patriotic than knowing all of the words to the Star Spangled Banner. The Partly Cloudy Patriot sparked memories of my naive thoughts in regards to what I thought was my perfect country.