Happy Independence Day

The very first Independence Day I can remember was when I was about five. We were stationed in Erlangen, West Germany. I remember feeling an overwhelming sense of pride for my country and for what my father and the other men I was surrounded by did for a living. I remember realizing, even at such a young age, how blessed I was to be under that flag on foreign soil.

We lived in Europe before anyone could even fathom the wall (clicking through this link will take you to a video clip of the news coverage when the Berlin wall fell) coming down. We were never allowed to go to the wall. We had base-wide war drills like schools have fire drills (my heart still jumps a little when I hear low-flying aircraft).

When we returned to the States we lived in New England for many years. My family's history is that area goes back 500 years. As I grew and learned more about the birth of our nation, my pride grew as well. This nation's history is in my blood.

As a teenager I was baptized into The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, often considered an American religion because it was founded in upstate New York. I cannot believe it is mere coincidence that this nation was formed with its laws of religious freedoms just prior to the Lord restoring the Gospel. When I told my father my decision to be baptized he stated, "That is why I do what I do, so you can have the FREEDOM to choose for yourself."

I am proud to be an Army Brat. I am proud to be an AMERICAN!

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Of course you know that July 4th is the day the United States declared independence from Great Britain in 1776. But did you also know that later three of America's former presidents would die on July 4th? John Adams and Thomas Jefferson both died on July4, 1826 (the nation's 50th birthday) and James Monroe died on July 4, 1831. CLICK HERE to see other events that occurred on our nation's birthday.