Christmas and the Fourth of July are the holidays that would reflect upon America best. According to Larry Hollon’s 2011 study, Christmas is the most commercialized and celebrated holiday in America. The malls start to decorate for Christmas at the beginning of November, holiday sales consume the papers and television, and the politically correct way to wish someone a “Merry Christmas” has changed to “Happy Holidays”. The birth of Christ is replaced by a jolly man with a bag full of toys, the church replaced by the mall, and the day replaced by a month of shopping and stress. Hollon’s study states that even 80% of atheists celebrate the holiday. Americans have taken a Christian holiday and made it into a national holiday of gift giving and family. The second most celebrated is the Fourth of July, which celebrates our independence from England and establishes the United States as its own nation. Our nation celebrates its day of foundation by setting fire to explosive objects while intoxicated and devouring an abundance of hot dogs. The tradition of lighting fireworks off started in 1777 where the Pennsylvania Evening Post wrote that in Philadelphia, “The evening was closed with the ring of bells, and at night there was a grand exhibition of fireworks (which began and concluded with thirteen rockets) on the Commons, and the city was beautifully illuminated.” Personally, there is no better sight than a dark sky being filled with the sparks of freedom with your family and friends by your side. With American holidays comes a profusion of food. Each American holiday is centered on plenty of appetizers, large dinner, a variety of desserts, but usually ends in wasting half of the food. Americans value food and always have an abundance, but also discard of it just as easy. If you were to sit down in an American restaurant, the menu would consist of mainly beef, chicken and salads. The portion size for one would feed two in any other country. The most American dishes would include hotdogs, hamburgers, apple pie, and anything fried. Americans will fry anything! We even fry our vegetables! My heart regrets the fact that I have tried everything from fried pickles to fried Twinkies; however, our love for processed and fried food reflects upon our health as a