The 4th of July

used to be my least favorite of all holidays.

This was because I equated the 4th to

sirens, firecrackers, cannons, and insanely loud fireworks. And don't forget those fights for the good candy.

I had/have sensitive ears, and the noise sends my ears into a pin-pointed, painful tizzy.

The sounds scare me, catch me off guard, kind of get me angry. So all of my life, I'd ask my parents to leave me home during the parades and the fireworks.

It was sad, but I'd rather stay away from the pain and fear.

But now, I go to see fireworks on the riverfront.

The fireworks are shot from the other side, so they aren't as shockingly loud.

A couple years back was my first time being able to sit through a fireworks show. My friends couldn't get over how amazed I was and how much I enjoyed it.

They didn't know how I'd loathed the 4th before because I couldn't really enjoy it.

Now, I can.

[I do still avoid the parades though. I heard that they stopped throwing candy altogether (I actually didn't mind the fights so much)].

So, Happy Independence Day all!