I’ve been worrying about Liberty. Oh, I don’t mean I’m worried about freedom, although there are always threats to that too. But there are plenty of advocates supporting freedom and defending it against its foes. I'm worried about Lady Liberty, the statue of Liberty. And I'm really not concerned about the colossus standing on Liberty Island in New York Harbor. That Miss Liberty is doing fine. After all, she is constructed of 179,000 pounds of copper and 250,000 pounds of steel. She's stood there since 1886, strong and shining. No, I have another Liberty in mind. I'm thinking of the one pacing outside a tax-preparation business during this bitter winter. The one trying to drum up business for the business.

     There are lots of these Liberties on sidewalks lately. It must be the most popular costume these days for this kind of sidewalk advertising. I admire people who work. Especially, I admire those who work at jobs that bring little financial reward, even less personal satisfaction and mostly long hours of bone-tiring weariness. I have been watching this particular Liberty for several days as I come and go in my work. She is obviously a he. I guess you could say she is a he in patriotic drag just trying to make a living. She is tall and skinny. Her costume is thin and wispy. It hangs very loosely on her frame. She has a Lincolnesque look about her. Narrow face with a jet black beard. She looks as if she might have just come from splitting rails on the farm to being a rail herself.

     Recently, I passed her early on a raw morning. At noon I drove by and she was still there, slowly braving the weather--just a bit above freezing temperatures but with a "Real Feel" well below. Later in the day--around 6:00 ish--she was still walking. Now snow was falling heavily. A couple of inches had accumulated. She was barely visible in the near whiteout conditions. The seven spikes of her crown were adroop under the weight of the snow. They are meant to represent seven continents. On her they made her look like an arctic palm tree in the middle of a blizzard.

     A few days later, morning broke with a harsh, steady, wintery rain. She was there. She had laid down her torch and was carrying a red, white and blue umbrella. The rain was driving at an almost horizontal angle. The umbrella was clearly not enough to keep her dry. She was utterly bedraggled. I hurried on to keep an appointment. Then I drove through a fast food lane, bought a cup of hot coffee and a sandwich for her and drove to her station. I wanted to walk a bit with her and get to know her, I wanted to know a little about her life. What, I wondered, was driving her? I wanted to express my admiration for her toughness. I wondered about her family. I wanted to ask how she got this job. I was curious about her hopes and dreams for the future. Her posing as the statue of Liberty made me want to ask if she was a patriotic person. Does she vote? My brain was arattle with curiosity. Alas, when I arrived, she was gone.

     Now, I'm left to wonder. Did she get sick? Was she fired? Did the money run out for her job? I wish I had been more thoughtful toward her sooner. Maybe I could have helped her somehow. Mostly, I wonder if she knows the poem by Emma Lazarus that is written on her base in New York Harbor? "Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free...." You know how it goes. I love that poem. She seemed to embody that description of those for whom America holds such a compelling attraction.

     I have found a source that sells Liberty costumes. $49.99 will get it. You have to pay $13.49 extra for the torch. And you can get a set of black eyelashes with a carrying case for $2.99. I miss Lady Liberty. Pay attention. The next Miss Liberty you see may be me!

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