{"id":14683,"date":"2026-06-02T21:20:42","date_gmt":"2026-06-02T21:20:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.maryslibrary.com\/?page_id=14683"},"modified":"2026-06-04T16:42:49","modified_gmt":"2026-06-04T16:42:49","slug":"grades-9-10-essay-winner-dylan-w","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.maryslibrary.com\/?page_id=14683","title":{"rendered":"Grades 9-10 Essay Winner: Dylan L."},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"banner<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What Does America Mean to You?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

 “Where liberty dwells, there is my country.\u201d Benjamin Franklin. America is my home
and it is the home of the free and the brave. Our freedom is what makes America so magnificent.
Over the last 250 years, America has fought in wars to keep us free from other countries\u2019 rules.
However, our freedom was not free. America\u2019s freedom came at a costly price. The price was the
lives of many fallen soldiers during numerous wars throughout the United States\u2019 history.
Therefore, American to me means being able to have the freedom to make my own decisions
without restrictions thanks to those that came before me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To begin, American to me means having the right to live my life how I chose. Here in
America, we have many freedoms that people in other countries do not have. We have the
freedom of religion, the freedom of speech, the freedom of the press, and the freedom of
assembly all from the First Amendment, in the Bill of Rights, which is part of the United States\u2019
Constitution. In fact, most immigrants come to America to find freedom. They want to be able to
choose their own religion, to talk to whoever they want, to own their own land, and to live where
they choose without restrictions or laws telling them no. Most importantly, the veterans that
fought and even died for our country are what helps us keep our freedoms in the United States. If
the United States\u2019 soldiers did not fight in wars or defend and protect our country like they do
every day the rights that we have would not exist. We have freedom because of them. Here in
America, I choose the sports I play, the friends I make, the place I live, the places I travel, the
college I pick, the career I choose, and so much more. Therefore, being an American gives me
the right to be who I wish to be and the ability to follow my dreams.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Furthermore, America to me means respect. We have so much to celebrate like the
opportunities available to us, our living conditions, and technology. America is a rich country
full of endless choices to make on our own. I am proud of what American has accomplished in
the last 250 years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In conclusion, America to me means not having restrictions and being able to make my
own choices and decisions because of what others did before me. America is the land of
opportunity, liberty, and equality. As the song \u201cMy Country, \u2018Tis of Thee\u201d says, \u201cMy country \u2018tis
of thee, Sweet land of liberty, Of thee I sing; Land where my fathers died, Land of the pilgrims\u2019
pride, From every mountainside Let freedom ring!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Back to main page<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

What Does America Mean to You?  “Where liberty dwells, there is my country.\u201d Benjamin Franklin. America is my homeand it is the home of the free and the brave. Our freedom is what makes America so magnificent.Over the last 250 years, America has fought in wars to keep us free from other countries\u2019 rules.However, our […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-14683","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.maryslibrary.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/14683","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.maryslibrary.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.maryslibrary.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.maryslibrary.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.maryslibrary.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=14683"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/www.maryslibrary.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/14683\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14729,"href":"https:\/\/www.maryslibrary.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/14683\/revisions\/14729"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.maryslibrary.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=14683"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}