I’ve always referred to my neighborhood, when talking to outsiders, as my “Leave it to Beaver” neighborhood. I live in a 40-year-old traditional with ivy inching up the sides, thanks to the shade from two majestic red oaks in the front yard. According to neighbors, each oak tree was planted as an affirmation of life by the house’s former mistress when her husband survived two heart attacks. I treasure this legacy left to us by the original owners. Neighbors have block parties, return your dogs when they escape the back yard, children play in the street, and the boy down the street helps you bag your leaves just to be nice. Can you picture the Norman Rockwell painting?
One of my favorite neighborhood events that epitomizes the Lake Highlands character is the Exchange Club-organized Fourth of July parade down Church Road and the ensuing carnival. Children ride bicycles and trikes decorated in streamers and flags. Cheerleaders and Highlandettes are in their uniforms. The high school Jazz Ensemble members play their horns. War veterans, community leaders and, of course, politicians — especially if it is an election year — walk or ride in convertibles or vintage automobiles.
We used to have Sue Willman and her clowns from Lake Highlands United Methodist Church. Sue led this ministry for decades, but finally retired. She and her teenaged clowns painted faces at the carnival for years. My daughter was one of Sue’s clowns; consequently, I was pressed into service on occasion. I managed a respectable four-petal flower and a firecracker burst, but that was the extent of my repertoire. The kids put me to shame. I think we have professional face painters now …
I love all the different groups — Realtors organizing ring toss games, Republican women registering voters, Democrats playing “Pin the Tail on the Donkey.” Aromas of popcorn and lemonade and hotdogs swirl with the smells from the petting zoo. As I look around, I see something better than a Rockwell painting. I see homeowners’ kids and I see kids from the apartments. I hear different languages spoken. I feel a community that has come together for a day to celebrate our nation’s independence.
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness.” Our forefathers gave their lives for these words. They built our country based on these words. We celebrate these words every Fourth of July. And we should affirm these words through our actions every day. I believe that our neighborhood does. Our neighborhood has wonderful volunteer, church and community organizations committed to helping those who need it, trying to get people on equal footing in order for them to pursue their dreams. Not all of our neighboring communities are similarly focused.
James Madison wrote more than 200 years ago “What becomes of the surplus of human life? It is either, 1st destroyed by infanticide, as among the Chinese and the Lacedemonians; or 2nd it is stifled or starved, as among other nations whose populations is commensurate to its food; or 3rd it is consumed by wars and endemic diseases; or 4th it overflows by emigration, to places where a surplus of food is attainable.” On this Fourth of July, I think we should remember that regardless of our place of birth, we are all God’s children. And there is a reason people are willing to risk their lives to work here, in a foreign country. Maybe they do not see another choice. Maybe they are just trying to feed their families, make lives for their families — just like you and me.
I do know that I’m glad I live in Lake Highlands and can attend Fourth of July parades and town hall meetings about the Town Center development instead of in Farmers Branch with its meetings about to whom landlords may rent apartments.
