My Favorite Holiday

I've been thinking about it, and I've decided that my favorite holiday is Independence Day. Sure, Christmas is fun....Halloween can even be a riot. But there's just something about remembering those who have given their lives for me, allowing me the life that I have today, that just gets to me.

On Saturday our little family took a quick trip to a local field that had been transformed into a flag display. In this field there are 1776 flags that they encourage you to walk through. Just the sacred feeling of being surrounded by ALL of those flags was amazing!! I was nearly in tears a few times.

I can't even begin to describe the feelings I feel when I see "Old Glory." There's such a swell of pride. This time of year I also turn to my favorite patriotic songs. My ABSOLUTE favorite is Lee Greenwood's God Bless the USA. I could listen to that song over and over again. The song just makes me want to cry in gratitude for this GREAT country and all the blessings I have because I live here.

I am so SO very grateful to those Founding Fathers who worked SO hard to give us the liberties that we now enjoy. I actually watched a movie today called A More Perfect Union. It was made many years ago by BYU, but was VERY historically accurate. I found myself SO into it, that I was nodding off. Yes, it was SUPER boring, but very historically important. I MADE myself watch it just so I could say that I did. And since watching THAT show, I have a greater appreciation for those men who fought for our Constitution, and the freedoms that they SO wanted, and we now enjoy!

Then today, I opened up my email, and what did I find?? A quote about the Declaration of Independence: "The Declaration of Independence was to set forth the moral justification of a rebellion against a long-recognized political tradition--the divine right of kings. At issue was the fundamental question of whether men's rights were God-given or whether these rights were to be dispensed by governments to their subjects. This document proclaimed that all men have certain inalienable rights. In other words, these rights came from God." (That came from Ezra Taft Benson.)

And then I also found a quote by George Washington that really hit me hard: "Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable supports. In vain would that man claim the tribute of patriotism, who should labor to subvert these great pillars of human happiness, these firmest props of the duties of men and citizens....Let it simply be asked, where is the security for prosperity, for reputation, for life, if the sense of religious obligation desert the oaths which are the instruments of investigation in courts of justice? And let us with caution indulge the supposition that morality can be maintained without religion. Whatever may be conceded to the influence of refined education...reason and experience both forbid us to expect that national morality can prevail in exclusion of religious principle." HOLY COW, isn't that EXACTLY where we're headed?? And it's just amazing to me that these men, SO long ago, KNEW exactly who was in charge of setting up this country...the One who led them to do what they did. How can our country continue without it's support and blessing from God??

I am grateful for a loving Creator who gave these men this knowledge and fervent drive to make this land, a land of freedoms. A land where we can enjoy our God-given rights to worship, think, act, and to simply be free.

And now to quote the Declaration of Independence, (but just a bit!) "We hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness...And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm Reliance on the Protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor."

How can we, who freely enjoy these liberties, simply forget those who gave it to us? It is my deepest hope to instill this love of country, and patriotism into my son's life, as well as any others I may come in contact with.