In driving through my neighborhood in Palo Alto, I noticed a lack of U.S. flags on residents’ homes. It was Memorial Day, one of the most significant days of the year for Americans to pause and pay homage to the young men and women who’ve gone before us in serving our country. Albeit residents restrained from flying their flags, few of us flew it for our own reasons.

What the flag represents:

It represents justice and liberty for all Americans.

To the military, it represents a vowed duty to protect the people of this land, and to be willing to lay down their lives to serve their country.

For immigrants, the flag represents freedom to practice their religion, freedom to pursue an education and to get ahead in life. It also means liberty and justice.

For so many people living all over the world, it represents a dream of hope that they hold onto in their country, while awaiting to immigrate.

The flag also represents freedom to express oneself; to vote, to protest, and to voice one’s political opinions.

The flag represents the 13 colonies, and the 50 states of the United States of America, and all of its citizens who have immigrated from all over the world.

It represents democracy!

Surely, from this rather short list, each American can relate and connect, in a positive way, to the American flag.

Personally, the flag represents my right to vote. It also reminds me of my brother who serves his country where ever he is deployed in the world. The flag represents my family who’ve immigrated to this country from Europe and Asia. To my grandparents and mother, it represents freedom from Nazi Germany during WWII.

I hope that Americans aren’t connecting the flag to politics or to elected officials, because the flag does not represent politicians, it represents you, me, and every American citizen in this country and what we the people believe in.