There were no fireworks this July 4^th!  There was no need for them.  We observed the holiday in the presence of three of America??™s finest, and they had all just recently returned home from a year in Iraq.  Now, that is what I call ???fireworks!???

My husband and I were the only ???outsiders??? at this family gathering, which made us feel very privileged.  But, talk about a couple of proud and happy parents!  All five of their children and oodles of grandchildren were together, which is something hard to accomplish in its own right.  But, this year their two sons and a daughter-in-law were back home, safe and sound, after serving our country.  This was one joyful celebration, without a doubt.  There were no fireworks due to being within the city limits.  But when I looked into the radiant eyes of ???Mom and Dad,??? I know I saw ???sparklers??? in shades of red, white, and blue!  We were so honored to meet these fine young people.  I had no idea how humble I would feel - like about 2 feet tall.  These kids were so young, and luckily still had their entire lives ahead of them.  We could only thank God they had come home in one piece.      

Naturally, there were a million questions I would have liked to ask.  But, they were put aside.  Knowing they had experienced things most of us can??™t even imagine, I knew they would discuss it when the time was right, and with whomever they chose.  Moreover, the last thing I wanted to do was make these ???heroes??? uncomfortable in any way.  For now, this family was rejoicing in being together for the first time in over a year.  With the two sons in Iraq, I??™m sure there were many times each family member wondered if they would ever ???all??? be together again.  The only discussion of the war was when my husband and I told them how proud we were of them, how honored we were to meet them, and we thanked them profusely for their service to our country.  We did repeat ourselves several times, without even realizing it.  It just couldn??™t be helped.  They had put their lives on the line for the entire USA.

It was a hot day in Texas, with humidity that made the heat suffocating.  Everyone was in and out of the pool on a regular basis.  I couldn??™t help smiling every time a family member emerged from the pool, and yanked on a military T-shirt of some sort.  Dad was quite proud of his T-shirt that day as well.  It was drab army green, and across the front it said, ???Grill Sergeant.???  And, he had done one fine job!  I didn??™t even try to count all the different meats the Sergeant had prepared for the festivities.

My eye did catch the plaque on ???Mom??™s??? wall??¦??¦??¦??¦??¦Bronze Star with Valor. 

I knew one son had received this award, and I so wanted to see the actual medal.  Again, I didn??™t say a word although I know it had to be somewhere in that house.  In fact, he received this award for outstanding performance during the fierce battles raged the night Saddam was pulled out of his ???rat hole!???  We happened to be having dinner with his parents that December night.  Little did we know what was transpiring, or the danger he was in, as we sat safely in our favorite restaurant.

No, there were no firecrackers or roman candles this year, and I don??™t think they were missed.  I??™m sure the sound of silence, and lack of fire in the sky was a welcome relief to these three young heroes.  But, there were fireworks of a different nature.  The kind you can??™t see or hear ??“ but you knew they were there.  They were in the beaming smiles, and deep in the hearts of one proud American family.