The American Ideal.....sort of

Okay…..now that I’ve gotten my bitchy woman rant off my chest (see previous post), I can actually write about what I had intended today.

I live in a remarkable little town. Being a military wife I have lived in many different places, but never one that reminded me of what America is portrayed as in movies and books.

During the Fourth of July weekend celebration I enjoyed a classic car show, parade, fire station competitions, dunk tank, community baseball game and fireworks. All this was held in the town park free of charge. People were milling around, smiling at each other. There were no pushy crowds, no litter on the ground; we didn’t even have to drive. It was within walking distance from our house. Just your typical vision of what America should be.

Well, that and the murderer who killed himself in the woods behind our house.

Oh….did I forget to mention that? (Sorry Mom, didn’t want you to worry.)

I was at work a couple weeks ago when my phone rang. It was my husband.

“Did you hear about the shooting in Quakertown?” he said.

Shooting in Quakertown? We moved further away from Philly to get away from crime.

“What happened?” I asked.

“Some guy shot his estranged wife and ran off. They say he’s hiding in the woods behind our house. He lives in our neighborhood.”

Great. Just freakin’ great.

I go home to police checking cars as I enter my neighborhood. There are two helicopters flying low, circling incessantly.

I watched the news with the doors locked waiting for my husband to get home with the kids. I was nervous, anxious, but not really scared. Just wanted to know what was happening.

Finally, we found out that the guy killed himself during a stand-off with police.

So there goes my vision of the ideal American town…..or does it? It’s sad, but I wonder if there is any place in the world left that hasn’t been marred by violent crime. Guess there are crazies everywhere.

So anyway….hope you had a good 4th of July. Mine was pleasantly uneventful.