I live within fifty miles of the town my dad grew up in, the one where my mom was raised, and the one where they raised me. I go to all three of them at various times. So I’ve lived and relived those drive-by moments in which the parents tell us where they were born, where Mom lived the night Dad picked her up for their first date, the house where they first lived together. And I’ve done it to my children too, pointing out the house where I was raised, the porch where I sat with their dad when we were little kids together and friends, that same porch where we were married one day.

It’s definitely anchoring to have so much personal history nearby. Sometimes I wonder what it’s like to start fresh in a brand new state far away from all that family heritage and not have a single, “Oh that’s where such-and-such happened” to hear or to share with your kids. I think that would have its own thrills. But there’s something about knowing where you come from, seeing where it all began. It’s usually moving to say the least. There’s an entire reality television show built around the concept now.

That’s the reason Americans through time have planted sign posts and engraved bronzed plaques to hail the places of our beginnings as a nation. Look, they’re saying, here’s where it began. If Paul Revere hadn’t… If the founding fathers had given up … If the Liberty Bell never had a reason to ring…we wouldn’t be here today. We wouldn’t be the same.

It’s a relatively new country we have. Sometimes we fight among ourselves about where it should go from here and how exactly to get there. Always, we’re grateful the founding fathers knew those days would come and established a system that would hopefully help us navigate the disagreements and somehow continue united. The rustic homes and simple buildings and quiet battlefields where Americans have hung those plaques and pounded those sign posts – those are the places where we can remember the hard work behind our foundation, the determined effort, the powerful inspiration.

This is what student travel is all about. This is why Boston educational student tours begin with the Freedom Trail to the Old North Church, the site for the Boston massacre, and more. It’s why Philadelphia still hails the Liberty Bell (its actually ringing history the stuff of myth or no) and why we’ve memorialized Independence Hall and so many of the other prominent spots in American history. It anchors us and reminds us that all great things have a beginning.

**Photo of Old State House in Boston by wallyg on Flickr.