On June 14, we observe Flag Day, a day honoring our national flag.
“I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”
The Pledge of Allegiance of the United States is a patriotic recited stanza honoring the American flag that has stood proudly during many wars.
Did you know the first flag that flew over our nation before it became free of the British Empire, where our state stars are, was a United Kingdom emblem? By reading Our Flag, you can better understand how far we’ve come as a nation. The publication features how the stars changed as new states became one throughout history.
Francis Scott Key couldn’t have penned better words to the “Star-Spangled Banner.”
And the rocket’s red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there,
O say does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave?
The final stanza, less known, commits all Americans to honor our flag.
Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,
And this be our motto – “In God is our trust,”
And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave.
With summer upon us and children out of school, perhaps a fun family moment could be a get-together to sing America’s National Anthem, the “Star-Spangled Banner,” or maybe just read Our Flag aloud and discuss the importance of our flag history.
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About the author: Blogger contributor Ed Kessler is a Promotions Specialist in GPO’s Publications and Information Sales Office.
Images and additional content provided by Government Book Talk Editor Trudy Hawkins. Trudy is the Senior Marketing & Promotions Specialist in GPO’s Publication & Information Sales Office supporting the U.S. Government Online Bookstore (https://bookstore.gpo.gov).
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