Why celebrate July 4th?

Jamal Abdullahi knows the answer. He came to the United States from Ethiopia in 1983 with no education and no job, but he was not afraid of hard work. In 2008, this father of three earned a bachelor's degree from the College of Brockport and had the audacity to expect even more for his kids, including his oldest daughter Biiftu. To help her appreciate her opportunities, he took her back to Ethiopia a few years ago. "My parents had told me stories about Africa, but I never really understood until I went there," she said. "(My relatives') eyes upon my life revealed my privilege."

Over the years, her Dad told her often, "All I can do is help you, but it is your future and you must help yourself." So she did. Last month, Biiftu graduated from Wilson Magnet High School in New York. She will attend Barnard College this fall. But there are two more reasons why they'll celebrate July 4th this year. Jamal works nights as a janitor at Wilson High, and Biiftu was class valedictorian. Where else could this happen, but in America?  Happy Independence Day!

A husband's prayer

by Edgar A. Guest

Forever is a long time, the life of moon and stars,

A longer life than churches know, or prison gates and bars,

And I have vowed to love her, forever and a day,

A vow that knows no changing or crumbling away.

Forever is a long time, the life of sea and tide,

No calendar can mark it, no seasons can divide;

It has no bitter ending -- let life bring what it may,

My love must last forever, forever and a day.

Though buildings fall in ruins and earthly splendors fade;

Though death shall separate us, still stands the vow I made.

Though fashions change and fancies sweep all charms we know away,

Our love must last forever, forever and a day.

For one soldier, July 4th is a religious holiday

Patrick never forgot what happened on his first Independence Day after returning from combat in Iraq. They were barbecuing in a friend's back yard when he heard Pop! Pop! Pop! Assuming it was machine gun fire, he yelled "Incoming!" and dove to the ground with his hands over his head. Then he realized it was neighbors lighting firecrackers. After that, every Independence Day he hid in his bedroom with the lights low, playing college football really loud until the popping ended. No more July 4th for him. Now, three years later, his son Lucas was seven, and eager to see fireworks. Patrick had mustered enough courage to march to the alter at church and accept God into his life, so he told fellow members about his terror, and how war never ends for some soldiers. They formed a prayer chain and put his need on Facebook. He was amazed how many wrote, "We're praying for you. You are being loved." So he signed up to run the hot dog stand at the park where fireworks would be set off. But could he endure them?

Patrick's Dad was also a veteran, so he asked him for advice. "Position yourself where you can see the fireworks being lit," his Dad said, "so you won't be caught off guard. And son, the most important thing is to surround yourself with friends you know and trust." At dusk, Patrick got worried. Last year he would have hurried home, but then a voice said, "We've got your back" and he turned to see two church members. Other church friends gathered around him. The fuses were lit. There was an explosion of color. "Look, Dad!" shouted Lucas. "I'm looking," he whispered, celebrating, for the first time, his Independence Day.                 (adapted and condensed from Guidepost Magazine)

Mom raised him to be a gentleman

Ovealla O'Neal is a 45-year-old home health aide for Samaritan Healthcare in Camden, NJ, where 35% of adults never completed high school and less than 8% go on to earn a bachelor's degree. She's also a single mom with five kids. But Ovealla overcame the odds. This spring her son AJ Ingwe graduated from LEAP Academy and enrolled at Rowan University to study engineering. His mom felt he deserved a "shout out," and she created one that thrilled him.

For $725, she rented a billboard in downtown Camden for three weeks. Below the sign, she arranged a street party with a cup cake truck and an ice cream truck. AJ's older sister picked him up from school that day so he wouldn't see the sign riding home on the bus. She told him they needed to meet their Mom at a spot near the billboard. Driving down the street, he wondered, "why are all my friends coming this way?" Then he saw why, and was totally surprised. Ovealla uses the word "good" to describe her 18-year-old. She raised him with strict rules: limited cell phone time, dinner together at home most nights, and no girlfriends. "She just makes sure I'm in school and doing what I need to do to be successful," he told the Philadelphia Inquirer.

His mom explained, "I wanted him to be a gentleman that young women will appreciate. I wanted to raise him different. I always tell my kids, 'When you are different, people treat you differently, and different isn't bad.'"

Another police chase? You decide.

Washington State Trooper Dave Hintz recently came upon a woman traveling on a busy highway, State Road 546, near the town of Lynden. The speed limit is 45 mph, but the driver, who is in her 80s, had gotten lost after going out for coffee. With her pedal on the metal, she was topping five miles per hour on a Rascal electric scooter. Trooper Hintz pulled her over, and asked to see her road map.

View from dash cam.

Together they realized she'd gotten lost and driven her Rascal four miles the wrong way. After turning her in the right direction, Trooper Hintz followed the woman all the way home, with his lights flashing. It took more than an hour, and some passers-by assumed it was the slowest police chase in history. "I wasn't trying to stop her," he explained. "I just treated her the way I would have wanted somebody to treat my mom."

Feed the hungry, heal the heart

Last April, Officer T.J. Young responded to a disturbance at a home in Denver, Colorado. It was 10:30 in the evening, and the couple was having a hot argument. The problem? They disagreed on how to pay for dinner for their family of four children and one grandfather. None had eaten yet.

Officer Young quickly determined no crime was committed, and the father of the children "removed himself from the situation" to end the argument. But the mother was still worried about how she was going to feed her hungry family. Officer Young's work was done, so he left, but instead of going back to the station, he went to a restaurant; bought meals for everyone in the family with money from his own pocket, and delivered them to the home. His police department posted that "thanks to his generosity all went to bed with full bellies."

Reward for a life well lived

Do you know a story of a life well lived? Maybe it's your life, or the life of a friend? Can you describe it in a 250 word essay? If so, you might win the home of your dreams. Tim and Deanna Railing own a 6,000 square-foot luxury cabin with an indoor pool on several acres near Columbus, Indiana, and they're going to give it to you if you write the winning essay. "Someone who didn't expect ever in their lifetime to have this come true for them is going to," Deanna said.

Your next house?

Why reward a life well lived? When he was a teenager, Tim was paralyzed in a skiing accident, but since then he's found joy in his family and his career. "So often tragedies strike and you don't know when they are going to happen," Deanna explained. "We thought if we got enough support from people around the country, we could change someone's world for the better."

The Railings can't afford to give the house away for nothing. The contest has an entry fee. Each essay must include a check for $150. Unless 4,500 essays are submitted, the fee will be returned and the contest cancelled. The deadline for submission is November 16. To read all the rules and see more photos of the house, visit http://columbusloghome.com/rules.html  Maybe it's time to sharpen your pencil?