The Star Spangled Banner

The last of my patriotic posts will end with the most important..."The Star Spangled Banner".
Most people know the story of our National Anthem. It was written by Francis Scott Key during The War of 1812 while he was watching the soldiers was raise the flag over Fort McHenry in Baltimore on Sept 14, 1814. The song was first used by the Navy in 1889, Pres. Woodrow Wilson used in in 1916, and on March 3, 1931 Congress made a resolution signed by Pres. Herbert Hoover to make this song our National Anthem.

On a more personal note, I have had the privilege to see this flag twice. I saw it in 2002 while it was being restored and again in 2010 after the restoration was complete. It is an amazing flag to see!

Oh say, can you see, by the dawn's early light,
What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming,
Whose broad stripes and bright stars, through the perilous fight,
O'er the ramparts we watched, were so gallantly streaming?
And the rockets' red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof thru the night that our flag was still there.
Oh say, does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

On the shore, dimly seen thru the mists of the deep,
Where the fore's haughty host in dread silence reposes,
What is that which the breeze, o'er the towering steep,
As it fitfully blows, half conceals, half discloses?
Now it catches the gleam of the morning's first beam,
In full glory reflected now shines on the stream:
"Tis the star-spangled banner! Oh, long may it wave
O'er the land of the the free and the home of the brave!
Oh, thus be it ever, when free men shall stand
Between their loved homes and the war's desolation!
Blest with vict'ry and peace, may the heav'n rescued land
Praise the Pow'r that hath made and preserved us a nation!
Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,
And this be our motto: "In God is our trust!"
And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

God Bless America

Here is the next song in my patriotic installment...

"God Bless America"

This short, but sweet song, was written by Irving Berlin in 1918, he then revised it in 1938. It was written to be like a prayer to God to protect this great nation. Berlin started writing it while serving in the Army at Camp Upton in New York, but then he put it aside. When Hitler started rising to power in 1938, Berlin pulled it back out and revised it. Kate Smith sang it on her radio show on Armistice Day (now Veterans Day) in 1938 and it became her signature song. 

"God bless America, 

Land that I love, 

Stand beside her and guide her 

Thru the night with a light from above; 

From the mountains, to the prairies, 

To the oceans white with foam, 

God bless America, my home sweet home. 

God bless America, my home sweet home."  

My, Country, 'Tis of Thee

This is my next one..."My, Country, 'Tis of Thee" was the unofficial anthem of The United States until it was replaced by the "Star Spangled Banner" in 1931. Written by Samuel F. Smith and set to the tune of Britain's "God Save the Queen", it was first performed on July 4, 1831 by a children's choir in Boston.


My country, 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing; land where my fathers died, land of the pilgrims pride, from every mountainside let freedom ring!

My native country, thee, land of the noble free, they name I love; I love thy rocks and rills, they wood and templed hills. My heart with rapture thrills like that above.

Let music swell the breeze and ring from all the trees sweet freedom's song; let mortal tongues awake; let all that breathe partake; lets rocks their silence breath, the sound prolong.

Our fathers' God, to thee, author of liberty, to thee we sing; long may our land be bright with freedom's holy light. Protect us by thy might, great God, our King!

America the Beautiful

In light of things that have been happening lately I feel that we all need a little reminder of what made, and still makes, this country great. Our belief in something better, our belief in something greater then ourselves, our pride in this nation even with all its problems...that is what makes us great!
For the next few days I am going to post lyrics to patriotic songs in the hope that the beautiful words will sink into our hearts and help us to once again remember what makes our nation the greatest nation on Earth!

America the Beautiful
Oh, beautiful for spacious skies, for amber waves of grain, for purple mountain majesties above the fruited plain! America! America! God shed his grace on thee, and crown they good with brotherhood from sea to shining sea.
Oh, beautiful for pilgrim feet, whose stem impassioned stress a thoroughfare of freedom beat across the wilderness! America! America! God mend thine every flaw, confirm they soul in self control, they liberty in law.
Oh, beautiful for heroes proved in liberating strife, who more than self their country loved, and mercy more than life! America! America! May God thy gold refine, till all success be nobleness, and every gain divine.
Oh, beautiful for patriot dream that sees beyond the years. Thine alabaster cities gleam, undimmed by human tears! America! America! God shed his grace on thee, and crown they good with brotherhood from sea to shining sea.

Quote from Robert D. Hales

I found this quote from April 2015 General Conference talk that Robert D. Hales gave. It was in his talk titled "Preserving Agency, Protecting Religious Freedom".

"As we walk the path of spiritual liberty in these last days we must understand that the faithful use of our agency depends upon our having religious freedom...

There are four cornerstones of religious freedom that we as Latter-day Saints must rely upon and protect.

The first is freedom to believe. No one should be criticized, persecuted, or attacked by individuals, or governments either, for what he or she believes about God. ...

The second...is the freedom to share our faith and our beliefs with others.

The third...is freedom to form a religious organization, a church, to worship peacefully with others. ...

The fourth...is the freedom to live our faith - free exercise of faith not just in the home and chapel but also in public places."

I think with everything going on lately, from the Supreme Courts decision on gay marriage to the attack on Christian values that is happening, this is very important to remember especially during this 4th of July holiday that is coming up. 

Memorial Day 2015

Many people spend Memorial Day shopping sales, visiting the graves of family members who have dies, and celebrating the “unofficial” beginning of summer with barbecues and a multitude of other fun activities.

Do we also take time to remember why we celebrate Memorial Day in the first place? It started as Decoration Day after the Civil War to honor those, Union and Confederate, who had died. These celebrations were scattered and, because of the divide between the North and South, they were also celebrated differently. It wasn’t until after WWII that the holiday garnered a stronger following. In 1967 it was renamed Memorial day and finally in 1968 Congress passed the Uniform Holiday Act designating Memorial Day be celebrated the last Monday in May instead of on May 30.

This holiday is to remember all those who served in died protecting this great nation. These people gave all, they forsake everything “in memory of our God, our religion, and freedom, and our peace, our wives, and our children” (Alma 46:12). They gave their all, so that we might be free. So that we can sleep in safety knowing that someone is standing watch saying that no one can hurt us tonight, not on their watch.  In doing so many lost their lives for our defense and for the defense of this chosen land.

It is nice to have a holiday to celebrate their lives, but we shouldn’t just remember their sacrifice on this one designated day of the year. We need to remember them always. We need to remember those who fought against the tyranny of England and were traitors because they wanted a free nation. Those who fought to keep this nation together and to make sure that all men, no matter their color, were free. Those who left and fought in a war that this nation wasn’t even a part of until the very end. The greatest generation, who went to fight Hitler’s oppression and not only free multiple nations from his madness but a group of people who suffered greatly under his hands. And those on the Pacific front who fought the Japanese and suffered under horrible conditions in their POW camps.  Those who left to fight the communist uprising in Korea and Vietnam.  And, now those who are fighting a war on terror, where the enemy is not only abroad, but also at home.

It is up to us to keep their memory alive and to honor them by making sure that we keep our great nation “the land of the free and the home of the brave!”

To the Man with the Roses

On Friday our ward Young Men and Young Women had the opportunity to go  do baptisms at the SLC Temple. It was a great day and very spiritual. As we were leaving and pulling out of the parking under the conference center Felicia noticed a young man sitting on the corner and holding a bouquet of a dozen, gorgeous, long stem red roses. He looked so nervous and expectant. Every time he heard footsteps he'd look up to see if it was whomever he was expecting. And every time it wasn't that person his face just fell.
I don't know if it was a blind date, if he was going to ask a special someone to marry him, but whatever his story was I was so touched by this sight. I hope that who he was waiting for finally showed up and that it all worked out.
Since this, I have found myself going back to this scene and pondering it, replaying it in my mind. And it occurred how much this is like Jesus and our Heavenly Father. How often do they sit there and are just waiting for me to show up, to open my heart and let them in? How their faces must fall every time I don't take the opportunity to come to them and invite them into my life
It really is so simple for me to let them in. All those simple "primary answers" are all I need to do, but yet as an adult I complicate it so much. Do I really want to leave them standing their waiting?
I know my answer, I just need to make it happen. I just need to show up and they'll be there, with open arms, so glad that I finally made it.