One of the things that many Americans lack today is an understanding of the Constitution. Too many people know of the Constitution but not what stands behind it. Sadly, our children are not being taught about the Constitution in many of our public schools. It is up to us to know and understand the Constitution and then pass that down to the children.

However, it starts with us. I will admit that I have no idea if I ever learned about the Constitution when I was in school. I may have. If I did, I probably didn’t pay attention. I was very different than my own 16-year-old is today. He is a history buff and knows much about this country. It really wasn’t until recent years that I began to try and understand what exactly this country was founded upon and what it means to me as an American citizen.

You can easily do a Google search to find the Constitution online but let me provide you a brief synopsis of it in this article. It first starts with a preamble, which is basically a statement that explains the purpose and principles of the U.S. Constitution. What stands out most in the preamble is this statement: “We the people.” That is what this country is about, we the people. I fear that we are losing this.

After the preamble come seven articles. The first article serves to set up the national legislature and provides details of its powers. Within this first article are 10 sections. Following are the remaining six articles: Article 2, The Executive Branch; Article 3, The Judicial Branch; Article 4, Relations of the States to Each Other; Article 5, Amending the Constitution; Article 6, National Debts, Supremacy of the National Government; Article 7, Ratifying the Constitution.

After the seven articles are 27 amendments. These are especially worth taking the time to read and understand. Many of us are probably familiar with the 1st Amendment, the guarantees of our freedom of speech, religion and the press. Did you also know that within this 1st amendment is the right to assemble peaceably and to ask the government to fix something they are responsible for? This is exactly what I believe the Tea Party is based upon.

Although some in the media have tried to defame the Tea Party, the fact remains that for the most part it has been a peaceable gathering of American people, “we the people,” who are saying, “Look government, you are making a mess out of this country and we want you to fix it!”

I could go on but instead I challenge every reader, if you have not already taken the time to understand you’re U.S. Constitution, do it. It will open your eyes.