Fourth of July

Reprint from  Mississippi Torch Vol 20-No. 7- July 2007
Donna Simmons Germany 
First Pentecostal Church
Natchez, MS
Pastor Rev. James Johnson

Fireworks! Celebrating this holiday with a wonderful firework display is how we remember the day. The fourth of July has always been the longest day of the year, next to Christmas Eve of course, in anticipation of great things. Years ago, families would go to the local campgrounds and enjoy the heat of summer in a cool natural spring swimming hole. People from all area were doing the same.


As children, we swam, walked the nature trail, or played in the park area. Parents secured the picnic table and prepared the food. Finding a picnic table close enough to the cool creek that fed the swimming area was a priority. The coolness of the creek cooled the watermelon. Eating hot dogs, hamburgers, coleslaw, baked beans, fresh roasted corn n the cob, spring cooled watermelon and many other delightful goodies was an all day long feast.

After all the children’s energy was gone, the last event of the day was the fireworks. Only when darkness came would the fireworks begin. The beauty of a black sky and small colorful specks igniting, changing shapes and colors was awe inspiring. Childlike wonderment always seeks the source of the pops and crackles. However, with apprehension of missing the beautiful display of lights, eyes were always looking up. This was spectacular!

As years go by those children become adults. New traditions evolve. Family members and friends change through the years. Some things remain the same like all day cooking out on grills. The chore of seeing that food is prepared and ready for hungry bodies that have an appetite will never cease. By the end of the day when the sun is gone from the sky, there will always be a display of fireworks as we celebrate Independence Day.

While living in Jackson, the reservoir always put on a display of fireworks over the water. The blackness of the area added to the grandness of the event. The double reflection of the fireworks on the water was awesome.

Now, living in Natchez the fireworks are ignited on barges in the Mississippi River. Both sides of the river can be utilized for the wonder and beauty of the pops and crackles that form brilliant lights in the sky. The gathering together of townspeople makes on reminisce about the picninc on the grounds with relay races, three legged race, softball and all the fun that comes when people gather together. But you don’t need to be on the banks of the river to take advantage of this firework display. The display can be seen from anywhere downtown. It does not start until the last ray of sunlight is gone from the sky and darkness is all around.

Today, we look at the wonder, glory and beauty of fireworks over the darkness of the night and see them as another event to entertain. It also brings to mind the rockets red blare and bombs bursting in air, the war, and the song produced.

During the war of 1812, Americans celebrated minor triumphs. In terms of material and money, the cost can not be calculated with accuracy because record keeping was not a priority. Support started to fall away after the Burning of Washington D.C. The American public became disillusioned by the war. Still, three soldiers, William Henry Harrison, Andrew Jackson, and Zachary Taylor become president.

Historians have stated the War of 1812 should have never been fought. It was motivated by merchants and greed. It had little to do with patriotism and national pride. The United States gained nothing in territory. The remarkable event of this war was that a young Georgetown lawyer pinned the immortal words of a poem. That poem written in 1813 became our country’s national anthem on March 3, 1931.

During his imprisonment, Francis Scoot Key watched from the bow of a ship that was behind the British warships. He must have had feelings of anticipation during the twenty-five hour bombardment. It started at 7 a.m. on September 13,1813. Surely he thought the battle was lost. Through the rain, bombs, rockets and cannon balls, the thirty by forty foot American Flag flew over the star shaped fort. The death of four brave men and twenty-four wounded were the human causalities the fort sustained that night.

Dawn came and he saw the flag still flying over Fort McHenry, What we feel today at our local fireworks show on Independence Day could not compare to the American pride Francis Scott Key felt while he penned the famous poem on the back of an envelope while sailing back into the harbor the morning after the bombardment. The words of his poem, The Defense of Fort McHenry, later became known as The Star Spangled Banner. Often the words we should remember are the words not always sung. The last stanza of that poem has these words:



O, thus be it ever when freemen shall stand,

Between their lov’d homes and the war’s desolation;

Blest with vict’ry and peace, may the heav’n rescued land

Praise the pow’r that hath made and preserved us as a nation!

Then conquer we must, when our cause 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!



If you have the opportunity this Fourth of July, be part of an Independence Day celebration. Reflect on the peacefulness that comes from being a part of this great country. As you watch the patriotic event and hear The Star Spangled Banner, remember those who have established the cornerstones of this democracy. Never forget all the lives that have been lost to insure our way of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Know that it is in God we trust!