We were born in blood and conflict, and it seems we like it there. Thomas Jefferson famously wrote, in response to Shay’s Rebellion, that “the tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants,” and we seem hellbent on proving him right, again, and again, and again.

We were built by conquest and capture, using enslaved people and indentured people (not making them equivalent here) to build on stolen land. I read a meme recently (our only form of information currency these days) that posited we weren’t a nation of immigrants, we are a nation of colonizers. It’s hard for me to find evidence to refute it.

We were based on laws created by flawed men making flawed and morally questionable decisions- 3/5 Compromise, no votes for non-landholders, or women. The Constitution and the Bill of Rights, great and powerful though they are, only reflect one very particular point of view- although many would argue the divide between the North and the South starts there. Ok, so, two points of view. Both white, both male, both landed.

And yet.

In all of that, there is still good. Not greatness, which is a word that I think gets overused to cover a multitude of sins. It’s hyperbolic and emotional. It’s fireworks and marching armies. I mean goodness. The idea of self-government, that the people, and not some God-ordained member of royalty, could in fact know best how to take care of each other, is good. The idea that those people could join together and represent their fellow citizens to make decisions for their common wealth, is good. It remains good.

People often say we can’t judge the past through the lens of the present. I think that’s fair, to a point. I think some things are unequivocally wrong, even though they have historical context and precedent. I’m not above that fray, I’m sure there are things I’m doing today that future generations will judge harshly. Ok. That is the way of America, or is should be. Instead of gazing longingly back towards a past that never really existed, we should be ever critical of our past wrongs and looking to repair them, while ever pushing forward to a brightly imagined future.

Because: America is a project and a process. It is not complete. The most good that our founders ever did was to make the Constitution amendable, mutable. It was made to change and grow. It was made to adapt with the people it serves. “We the People of the United States, in order to form a more perfect Union…” More perfect. Not perfect right now. More perfect. Perfecting. Becoming more all the time. This is our saving grace. This is our great work.

But if we learn nothing else from this year, let it be this: the work of America is constant. There are no breaks, or holidays. I wish it weren’t the case, but it is. I wish we could all just have a hot dog and watch some fireworks and rest comfortably in our beds, but we can’t. Because still in this good nation, some people don’t have food to eat or beds to sleep in. Some people are getting sick and have no way to pay for it. Some people are getting sick because they can’t afford to stay home. Some people don’t have the same access to civil rights and liberties. Some people are fighting just to be recognized as people at all, in the eyes of the law. None of that is great. None of that is good.

So we must keep on working towards a more perfect union. Because in a nation where the greatest good is our requirement-our moral obligation-to represent and take care of each other, it would be un-American to do anything else.

Happy 4th of July. May God Bless us all with grace, understanding, and deep love for each other.