Not Quite Patriotism

Last night, my Dad suggested that I spend my day singing every patriotic song that I know...all day long. Now, I did not think that this idea was a good one (I kinda like my quiet time at home), but my thoughts did move towards an incident that happened in a patriotic setting a long time ago.

My best friend, Maryann, and I were the oldest Girl Scouts in our town. We were sophomores in high school, a bit rebellious when it came to our style of Scouting, and didn't really care what others thought about us being scouts at the advanced age of 15.

We went camping with about 200 other scouts from our area. Maryann and I were standing next to each other during the flag-raising ceremony looking out over a ring of scouts from ages 6-15 (us), all acting very solemn. The tradition for flag ceremonies often included a song, and this ceremony was no different. The caller announced that we would sing "God Bless America."

Maryann and I started singing enthusiastically but found ourselves fading out of the song after the second word of the song.

The problem??

Maryann and I had learned a parody of "God Bless America" from my mom (I think, but it may have been from both of our moms...) that had the following lyrics:

God bless my underwear,
My only pair.
Stand beside them, and guide them,
Through the holes and the rips and the tears.
Through the washer and the dryer,
On the clothesline, everywhere!
God bless my underwear,
My only pair.
God bless my underwear,
My only pair!

When expected to be solemn leaders of a patriotic song, we could not remember the correct words! We dissolved into giggles, trying desperately to remain straight faced while others were watching.

To this day, I cannot remember the correct words to "God Bless America" without lots of concentration, embarrassment, and giggles!

Happy Independence Day, American readers!

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