Pikes Peak, Colorado

"These are times that try mens' souls...", as Thomas Paine writes in his 1776 series The American Crisis, a tumultuous time not terribly dissimilar from the challenges we face in modern day America.

As the July 4th holiday approaches, this too is a time - a time to take an Independence Day break from our national worries to reflect on the vast resources and beauty of our nation. The music and words of the well known hymn "America the Beautiful" is a treasured reminder of that splendor and is an optimistic counterpoint to the swirling uncertainty of our times.

Often called the national hymn of the United States, the words and music of  "America the Beautiful" encapsulate the pride and wonder that the hymn's originator, Wellsely College English professor Katharine Lee Bates, felt as she traveled throughout the United States in the late 1800s.

 Originally written as a poem, Bates had returned to her hotel and penned her thoughts after visiting Colorado and gazing from the heights of Colorado's Pikes Peak and produced, what would ultimately become, one of America's most beloved folk songs. The original version was first published in The Congregationalist in 1895, to commemorate Independence day.

The music that ultimately became the tune, that is so easily recognized today, was written by New Jersey composer Samuel Ward and was not published together with Bates' lyrics until 1910. Prior to that time, the general public sang a variety of other melodies to "America the Beautiful".

The final combination of Bates' poetry and Ward's music became an American folk song that inspires and reaffirms the beauty and grandeur of the American landscape.

Happy Independence Day! Let freedom ring!

America! America!
God mend thine ev'ry flaw,
Confirm thy soul in self control,
Thy liberty in law