What Does it Mean to Be American in the Year 2012?

This is a difficult and extensive question, one that has no absolute truth but rather millions of opinions that are true for the millions of individuals who live in the USA.  I am one American, one stitch in a large fabric.  I have met many people all over this country, each one leaving an important impression and teaching me something valuable.  What I have learned from people that we met has humbled me and shaped my views about this country.  I have also learned a great deal of history on this trip, and seen countless beautiful places that took my breath away.  But no matter how much I've experienced, there is always more to see, more to learn, more to glean.  If only I had time to bike back.

After traversing this country by bicycle I feel compassionate and proud of who and what I have encountered.  I am proud to be an American, and for me that is a big step. For as long as I can remember, I would always cringe at the pledge of allegiance and would never put my hand over my heart to salute.  I always associated patriotism with red white and blue, fireworks on the Fourth of July, and "God Bless America" in a Texas accent.  Now I think that patriotism is a very personal thing- it doesn't mean red white and blue, or belief in God, or even that America is the best country on earth.  I am not excited about any one of the three things I just mentioned.  But I am excited to live here, right now, today.  I'm excited to live in a place where people feel safe with each other, where people are kind; a place where 2 young women can safely ride bicycles from coast to coast and not be hassled.

2012.  Now.  It is a wonderful time to live- these are truly the days of miracle and wonder.  One one hand, technology is advancing faster than we can imagine, and people are struggling to keep personal connections in a digital age.  We are involved in two ongoing wars, and it seems that our two political parties can't so much agree on anything these days.  On the other hand, we are amidst an environmental and food revolution, with so many people realizing the harm industrial agriculture is doing to the land and our health.  More than that, consumers are responding by buying local and healthy food, supporting farmers and becoming involved once again in what they feed their families.  Life is becoming easier for people all over, with medical advances, transportation networks, and information sharing.  People are living longer and thinking about big things.  Life is hopeful, and there is so much room for change.

I am proud to call this beautiful land my home.  When you bike you are very much exposed to the elements.  If it is raining, you will get wet.  If it is hot, you will feel hotter.  If it is hilly, you will be tired.  And it is because of this that you become connected to the land you ride on.  With every pedal stroke you are looking around, feeling, moving.  There is nothing between you and the world around you.  And this is precisely why bicycling is so wonderful.  Only in our most vulnerable state- on a bicycle with no shield, no weapons, riding in the sweltering heat- were people as kind as they could be, opening their minds and homes to two travelers.  In a car you are in another world, protected from the elements and people, moving too fast to take in whats around you.  You ride in a car to get to the end destination; you bicycle to experience the journey.

There is no natural threat, no superiority complex, no barrier between people.  All that we feel that separates us can be overcome, if we can give up our material judgments and put aside our fundamentalist opinions.  We met many people of different political and religious beliefs than ourselves, and with the attitude "live and let live" we were able to have many meaningful conversations.

One of the conversations that sticks with me most from our trip is one with Curtis L., who we stayed with in Huron, SD.  We were discussing religion, and he said something on the lines of: "I just don't buy it.  I can't believe in a God that I don't know exists.  But I believe in people.  I can believe in you, I can believe in me.  That I buy."  I feel very similar.  We, as human beings, are as powerful and strong as we let ourselves become.  I believed in our trip from the start, and I knew we could do it.  We pushed ourselves and supported each other all across the country.  I believe in Zoey, I believe in myself, and I believe in everyone we met.

To be an American in the Year 2012 means, above all, to be open-minded.  To listen to others, even if you don't agree, and to consider their opinions.  The most dangerous people in this world are those who believe that they are right and will do anything to prove it.  They are not right- no one is right.  Absolute truth is an illusion- each person has their own truths.  And we must give each other the utmost respect as we all continue to build this country together.  America is and will forever be a work in progress.

America