What qualities of citizenship are we passing on to the next generation? Is it not our civic duty?
I hear all sorts of interesting adjectives to describe Queen Elizabeth II as people pay tribute to her following her passing. She was the Queen for about 30% of the time our country has existed, as well as a friend of the United States. Indeed there’s a lesson or two we can learn from her.
I hear words like “tough,” “sacrificial,” “loving,” “wise,” “tenacious,” and “graceful” to describe the leadership qualities of Queen Elizabeth II. People call these enduring qualities. Those attributes are taught, modeled, and passed on to succeeding generations in a monarchy. How you behave matters. In a free republic, we, too, have enduring qualities, but we are more likely to undergo cultural changes with each succeeding generation.
Americans have been described as “tough,” “sacrificial,” and “tenacious.” We were also described as “rebellious,” “generous,” “caring,” and “never leave a soldier behind” (a quality most of the world finds astonishing).
Here’s the thing: if we want to keep enduring qualities, Americans must personally live them out daily, teach them to our children, and model these attributes to a world in desperate need of heroes. I don’t perceive the Queen to have lived out attributes for accolades. She simply lived what she learned. It was her duty.
In short, we Americans need to work harder to build a legacy because we are a free people. Freedom requires responsibility. I wonder how many Americans think it is their duty to do the hard things that freedom requires. My faith propelled me to do the hard things, like being sacrificial, caring, and tenacious. I never thought of it before as my civic duty, but I do now.
This is Common Sense Civics and Citizenship.🇺🇸