Our twins, Maisie and Mason, ran through the sprinklers until they were soaked and laughing so hard their faces turned red.
“Mom!” Mason shouted, holding up a wet paper flag. “Maisie drowned America!”
“It fell in the sprinkler!” Maisie yelled back.
William looked at me from beside the cooler.
“We’re ignoring the chaos today, right?”
“Completely,” I said, smiling as I arranged plastic forks in a basket. “I’m choosing peace today.”
“That sounds healthy,” he said with a laugh.
By sunset, everyone would gather in our backyard to watch fireworks over the lake. That was always my favorite part. For a few minutes, no one argued. No one competed. No one tried to win.
Everyone simply looked up.
I had not grown up with holidays like that. My childhood celebrations were usually grocery store pie, paper plates, and someone falling asleep before dessert.
