The Pledge of Allegiance

I heard this on the radio yesterday and thought it was great for September 11, so I'm sharing it with you.

When the popular American comedian Red Skelton was a young man, he learned the meaning of the Pledge of Allegiance from one of his teachers. The lesson became so meaningful he remembered the explanation of his teacher, Mr. Laswell, throughout his lifetime. In 1969 (when there were only 48 states), Red Skelton made a recording of an explanation of the Pledge Of Allegiance. It goes like this:

I: Me; an individual; a committee of one.

Pledge: Dedicate all of my worldly goods to give without self-pity.

Allegiance: My love and my devotion.

To the Flag: Our standard; Old Glory ; a symbol of Freedom; wherever she waves there is respect, because your loyalty has given her a dignity that shouts, Freedom is everybody's job.

United: That means that we have all come together.

States: Individual communities that have united into forty-eight great states. Forty-eight individual communities with pride and dignity and purpose. All divided with imaginary boundaries, yet united to a common purpose, and that is love for country.

And to the Republic: Republic--a state in which sovereign power is invested in representatives chosen by the people to govern. And government is the people; and it's from the people to the leaders, not from the leaders to the people.

For which it stands,One Nation: One Nation--meaning, so blessed by God.

Indivisible: Incapable of being divided.

With Liberty: Which is Freedom; the right of power to live one's own life, without threats, fear, or some sort of retaliation.

And Justice: The principle, or qualities, of dealing fairly with others.

For All: For All--which means, boys and girls, it's as much your country as it is mine.

It's amazing the meaning you can derive when you think about the depth of the words, huh? You can read more about it here and here, and listen to it here.