There are so many things we think about when we think about American Independence Day. If you close your eyes and draw a picture in your mind of all the words that you associate with July 4th, there are probably fireworks, hotdogs, baseball, and family gatherings with everyone dressed in some form of red, white, and blue. When we talk about the American Revolution, you probably picture George Washington leading the troops or the Founding Fathers standing around signing the Declaration of Independence. You know what’s missing? Waffles.
Go ahead – get your waffle maker out and get ready to celebrate. If you don’t have a good waffle maker, here’s a very patriotic one .
It turns out that while in France, Thomas Jefferson enjoyed a pastry called “gaufres,” which were thin, crisp cakes cooked between two metal plates with intricate patterns. When he came back to America, Jefferson designed a hinged long-handled, two-sided, cast-iron patterned gridiron with interlocking patterns on each side, allowing the batter to be cooked evenly. The waffle iron became so popular that “waffle parties” became one of the first American pasttimes.
Once, during the 2008 election, at a diner in Pennsylvania, a reporter asked Presidential-hopeful Senator Barack Obama for his thoughts on former President Jimmy Carter having talks with the Palestinian Islamic militant group called Hamas. The Senator responded with, “Why can’t I just eat my waffles?” Who could have predicted that President Thomas Jefferson would have given President Barack Obama a solid way to deflect a controversial question?
Maybe waffles aren’t the most American thing to come to mind when you think about celebrating our nation, and maybe that’s fair. In this case, the waffle wasn’t iconic of what would become the America we know today, but the fact that Thomas Jefferson found something he loved, and he shared it.
America is a great melting pot of cultures and traditions. Sharing the things you love with those around you, is perhaps one of our greatest traditions. As you spend your 4th of July celebrating our nation, take a moment to reflect on what you are sharing with others and on what they have shared with you. The greatest freedom we have is to experience America for what it is – a nation of people from all walks of life with a diverse set of beliefs and backgrounds, who blend together to form a community united around the freedom to be who we are. Happy Independence Day!