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ONE DOLLAR BILL

 

Take out a one dollar bill. The one dollar bill you're looking at first
came off the presses in 1957 in its present design. This so-called paper
money is in fact a cotton and linen blend, with red and blue minute silk
fibers running through it. It is actually material. We've all washed it
without it falling apart. A special blend of ink is used, the contents we
will never know. It is overprinted with symbols and then it is starched to
make it water resistant and pressed to give it that nice crisp look.


If you look on the front of the bill, you will see the United States
Treasury Seal. On the top you will see the scales for a balanced budget.
In the center you have a carpenter's square, a tool used for an even cut.
Underneath is the Key to the United States Treasury. That's all pretty
easy to figure out, but what is on the back of that dollar bill is
something we should all know.


If you turn the bill over, you will see two circles. Both circles,
together, comprise the Great Seal of the United States. The First
Continental Congress requested that Benjamin Franklin and a group of men
come up with a Seal. It took them four years to accomplish this task and
another two years to get it approved.


If you look at the left-hand circle, you will see a Pyramid. Notice the
face is lighted, and the western side is dark. This country was just
beginning. We had not begun to explore the West or decided what we could
do for Western Civilization. The Pyramid is uncapped, again signifying
that we were not even close to being finished. Inside the capstone you
have the all-seeing eye, an ancient symbol for divinity. It was Franklin's
belief that one man couldn't do it alone, but a group of men, with the
help of God, could do anything.

"IN GOD WE TRUST" is on this currency. The Latin above the pyramid, ANNUIT
COEPTIS, means, "God has favored our undertaking."

The Latin below the
pyramid, NOVUS ORDO SECLORUM, means, "a new order has begun." At the base
of the pyramid is the Roman Numeral for 1776. If you look at the
right-hand circle, and check it carefully, you will learn that it is on
every National Cemetery in the United States. It is also on the Parade of
Flags Walkway at the Bushnell, Florida National Cemetery, and is the
centerpiece of most hero's monuments. Slightly modified, it is the seal
of the President of the United States, and it is always visible whenever
he speaks, yet very few people know what the symbols mean.


The Bald Eagle was selected as a symbol for victory for two reasons:
First, he is not afraid of a storm; he is strong, and he is smart enough
to soar above it. Secondly, he wears no material crown. We had just
broken from the King of England. Also, notice the shield is unsupported.
This country can now stand on its own. At the top of that shield you have
a white bar signifying congress, a unifying factor. We were coming
together as one nation. In the Eagle's beak you will read, "E PLURIBUS
UNUM", meaning, "one nation from many people."


Above the Eagle, you have thirteen stars, representing the thirteen
original colonies, and any clouds of misunderstanding rolling away. Again,
we were coming together as one.

Notice what the Eagle holds in his talons. He holds
an olive branch and arrows. This country wants peace, but we will never be
afraid to fight to preserve peace. The Eagle always wants to face the
olive branch, but in time of war, his gaze turns toward the arrows.


They say that the number 13 is an unlucky number. This is almost a
worldwide belief. You will usually never see a room numbered 13, or
any hotels or motels with a 13th floor. But think about this: 13
original colonies, 13 signers of the Declaration of Independence, 13
stripes on our flag, 13 steps on the Pyramid, 13 letters in the
Latin above, 13 letters in "E Pluribus Unum," 13 stars above the
Eagle, 13 bars on that shield, 13 leaves on the olive branch, 13
fruits, and if you look closely, 13 arrows. And, for minorities: the
13th Amendment.


I always ask people, "Why don't you know this?" Your children don't
know this, and their history teachers don't know this. Too many
veterans have given up too much to ever let the meaning fade. Many
veterans remember coming home to an America that didn't care. Too
many veterans never came home at all.


Share this page with someone, so they can learn what is on the back
of the UNITED STATES ONE DOLLAR BILL, and what it stands for...
Otherwise, they will probably never know...