Picture the fanciest clothes, the biggest houses, the fattest wallets, and all the best things in life anyone could ever want. Does this sound like the latest big movie, or a new music video? If you said yes, then you are absolutely WRONG. Actually, this describes the lives of the signers of the Declaration of Independence. These lively words on a plain piece of parchment were the first official document of the United States. For those of you who may not have paid attention in class, it is this document that gives us a reason to celebrate with barbeques and fireworks on the Fourth of July.

The holiday that we celebrate sprang from very small beginnings. Walking through the doors of Independence Hall, I am surprised that the inside is not as exciting as the outside. The hallway is rather plain. Oh, but wait… I looked over to my left and saw the place where the first Supreme Court held trials. One thing stuck out to me. In the middle of the courtroom floor was a half-sized cage with a strapped closing. Our super park ranger, Ranger McClenney, told me that that is where the person accused in the trial would stand until court was over. The saying "stand trail" comes from this. So even if you didn't steal that apple (which is not a capitol offense) you still had stand uncomfortably in the box until you were cleared from blame. Ouch!

The Declaration of Independence is a valuable document, not just for its age but the ideas that it contains. Those ideas include the equality of all people, the right to pursue happiness in life, the necessity to maintain some type of order, with laws and made by all the people instead of a powerful few. So sad and too bad that it was not exactly obeyed. This document helped to form the most powerful country in the world, but we have more work to do. Let us use this document in our everyday lives, to remember that we are all equal, and that we all are looking for the sweeter things: Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

Kevin