REMEMBER THE ALAMO!

So, today, the history-lover in me screams out, "Remember the Alamo!" Although not a native Texan, I get passionate about this subject. These men (and the women behind them)stood for something. They stood up and fought to be free from tyranny. They did not leave it in others' hands, thinking, "What could one little person like me do?" On days like this, I resolve to do better to be brave and courageous. What an example we have if we would only look in our history books. Our children must be taught - but who will teach them if we don't know history ourselves!


These men who fought were just people like you and me. They loved, they lived. They were not crazy-eyed fanatics with nothing better to do. They fought for a principle. Even though they knew there was NO CHANCE of them winning, they followed the call: "Victory or death". We are not called upon today to die for these principles. We are called upon to live for them. To stand up and be counted in fighting for freedom.

A reporter named Chuck Baldwin summed it up so nicely for me:

"Liberty is an easy word to say, but it is a hard word to live up to. Freedom has little to do with financial gain or personal pleasure. Accompanying Freedom is her constant and unattractive companion, Responsibility. Neither is she an only child. Patriotism and Morality are her sisters. They are inseparable; destroy one and all will die...

"Try to recall the time in this country when ordinary men and women had the courage of their convictions and were willing to sacrifice their lives for freedom and independence.
One thing is certain: those courageous champions did not die for a political party or for some "lesser of two evils" mantra! They fought and died for a principle. So did the men at Lexington and Concord. That is our heritage."

I believe there are still men and women who have courage to stand for their convictions. In a more modern time (okay, kind of -- 1989), Ronald Reagan said this:

"If we forget what we did, we won't know who we are. I'm warning of an eradication of the American memory that could result, ultimately, in an erosion of the American spirit. Let's start with some basics: more attention to American history and a greater emphasis on civic ritual. And let me offer lesson number one about America: All great change in America begins at the dinner table. So, tomorrow night in the kitchen I hope the talking begins. And children, if your parents haven't been teaching you what it means to be an American, let 'em know and nail 'em on it. That would be a very American thing to do."

So, my call to myself and anyone who dares to make it to the end of this long blog is this:

Dare to do right, Dare to be true,
You have a work that no other can do.
Do it so bravely, so kindly, so well.
Angels will hasten the story to tell.

Dare to do right, Dare to be true,
Other men's failures can never save you.
Stand by your conscience, your honor, your faith.
Stand like a hero and battle till death!

Dare, Dare, Dare to do Right!
Dare, Dare, Dare to be True!
(LDS Childrens Songbook, page 158)

You don't have to push a handcart,
Leave your family dear,
Or walk a thousand miles or more
To be a pioneer.
(LDS Children's Songbook, page 218)

Remember March 6, 1836. Remember April 19, 1775. Remember July 4, 1776. Remember November 19, 1863. Remember that this land was ordained to be free so that a spring day in 1830 could happen. Remember that the Lord has said that as long as He is the God of this land, we shall be free. Let's keep choosing to be free.

Let's "Remember the Alamo."