We have a couple of birthdays in the family at this time of year and the flags come out.
Do you fly your nation's flag at birthdays? Do you have little toothpick sized flags to put in your rolls and flags on your paper napkins and flag garlands on your Christmas tree and when picking friends up at the airport and...
Danes love to fly the flag. Many have a flagpole in their yard. On summer Sundays you will see the flag flying from the stern on scores of small yachts in the waters surrounding the country. The flag is used left and right in advertisements and company logos. And on the special flag-days, like Constitution Day or the Queen's birthday, they will fly in abundance all over Copenhagen.
We are such a small country that we don't think this behavior could feel threatening to anybody. Our Scandinavian brethren, Norway, Sweden, and Finland, share some of the joy of flying their flags from their private flagpoles. That is just what people do, right?
But in many countries the flag is an official national symbol only flying in front of public buildings or on very special occasions like the Olympics or when commemorating events of war. When it is our gals and guys against everybody else.
The Scandinavians don't fly against; we fly because - to our eyes - it is festive.
To others it may seem aggressive. Where is the fine line between Love of Country and nationalism?
Even a Hurray (hurrah (hʊˈrɑː) , hooray , hurray or hooroo) is a cultural expression.