My American Heritage by Peter Snyder

Ride with me on my rambling motorcycle. Fly with me as I soar on hang-gliders high above mountains from New England to the Cumberland Plateau, and feel the wind in my sails on inland lakes from Lake Erie to the Northern Gulf Coast. Witness this journey through our American landscape and gain a deeper understanding of forces driving our personal and national destinies. The carefree days of youth have flown. We cannot ignore the reality of controversial issues like civil rights, justice, Vietnam, and “free love”. Timeless values are challenged more today than yesterday. Our country is in a continuous adolescent, defiant, deceitful, morally bankrupt decline. But there is hope! We are in a war, not with lead bullets, but one of anger, accusation, antagonism, threats, shame and blame. We do not have peace and unity in our country like we had just a few decades ago. How do we meet these challenges? Sooner or later, we all must come to a revelation that we cannot continue in the way we have been going. This truth is what each man and woman must understand or ultimately forfeit everything. As much as each of us would like to think that “I am the master of my fate and the captain of my soul,” we are not. If we continue to make up our own rules, we face certain ruin when we could otherwise gain redemption and regeneration. Several experiences have led me to this conclusion. This memoir depicts my journey from childhood to maturity in our country’s North and South, a personal discovery of cultural tensions deepened by family ties, research, and exploration. Reflections on war play a large part, from the Civil War to WWII and Vietnam. It is a story about family, faith, flying, fighting, and staying afloat. It is a tale of hopes and dreams, uncertain heights, surprise wrecks, life and death, heart-wrenching stresses, amazing discoveries, popular and unpopular values, mixed with grace and mercy. Read about the revival in my own life, marriage, and family and discover how these findings apply as well to the church, our country and beyond.