What is an American?

Dear Margaret,

First of all, welcome to the United States of America. I trust you will find it a beautiful, exciting, and fun country with opportunity aplenty. In an effort to get you acquainted with your new home, I want to tell you what being an American is all about.

American citizenship first and foremost means you are free for freedom is the founding principle of the United States. We have the freedom to live where we want and worship in a way we choose. America is also a nation that finds its strength in its diversity, for anyone can be an American no matter what color their skin is or what country they hail from.

An American loves life enough to want the best it has to offer. In America anyone and everyone has a chance to further themselves and pursue their dreams. This country is known as the land of opportunity, and each of its citizens truly embrace this philosophy. Americans look into the future and are always striving for a bigger and better tomorrow.

Americans also understand that achieving the best in life requires action, hard work and a lot of effort. You will have anything you want at your finger tips, but know that you must work for it, and take some risks in order to achieve it

Americans think ahead, in every way possible, and are very generous. We care about helping the poor and helping the earth in anyway possible. Whether it is planting a tree, picking up trash, or recycling, Americans help in any way they can. We give money to charities in order to help kids who do not have homes or are being treated for an illness, and donate millions of dollars to those suffering from natural disasters both domestic and abroad.

Americans seek economic prosperity in everyway possible. Unfortunately, right now it is hard because we are in the worst economic state as possible, but we as Americans are working as hard as possible to rebuild our economy. Once that is accomplished we will be the successful country we once were.

Being an American has a sense of pride. We as people are very proud of what we do and make. We work very hard to create things that are cutting edge, leading in technology and of tremendous quality. We build things we are proud of, and we only build the best. We put all of our feelings and emotions into what we build, as we do not sit and wait for things to happen. We get things done and fight for what we want for both ourselves and our families.

Being an American is also being able to think as an individual. We can express yourself in anyway we like. We are very proud of what we believe in, which is demonstrated through our politics. People who run for office express how they feel, stand up for what they believe in, and explain what they would like to see for the country. This liberty is what we call freedom of speech, and is a founding principle of our nation.

We have a government that is for the people and is run by the people. Those in office have a passion for keeping our country happy and doing what they think is right for the public they serve. Our government is diverse as well, as it does not matter what color you are as long as you fight to keep our country to the best it can be. Americans fight for what is right, and stick up for people suffering in foreign lands. We fight so that other nations can also be as free as we are. We want each and every person to be able to think like an individual and worship like an individual.

An American supports their troops in every way possible. We know our troops fight to keep our freedom and to help in anyway possible. Our troops are passionate for our country and put their lives on the line everyday to fight for our freedom and safety. We always keep them in our thoughts a prayers so that one day they can come home to our country safely to be with their families.

All in all the importance of being an American is thinking like an individual and being your own person. Having every chance to pursue your goals, and being passionate are common qualities of our people. In short, being an American means believing in yourself and your country. I hope that you and your family have safe travels to our glorious nation, and wish you nothing but the best of luck as you join us.

Sincerely,

Erin Edwards