Today I was finishing up my lesson on Patriotism for Relief Society. When I was finished, I set it aside and decided to read a history of my great-great grandfather, George Washington Taggart. I found some of the most amazing stories. I had no idea that he played the fife for the procession as the bodies of Joseph and Hyrum were brought back from Carthage jail. But something that really struck me as I was thinking about patriotism was this statement in a letter to his wife Fanny as he prepared to join the Mormon Battalion: "I feel, Fanny, as though I had made as great a sacrifice as I could wel make, in that I have forsaken for the time being My possessions My Family and at the risk of life start for Mexico as a United States Soldier with 500 of My Brethren in order to show that the Blood of my Grandfathers, who fought and bled in the revolutionary war and the spirit of liberty and freedom still courses in the veins of some of their posterity that are called Mormons, I go forward on this expedition with ful faith and confidence that I shal have your prayers and blessings and that My life wil be preserved and that I shall again have a joyful meeting with you and Eliza Ann and enjoy a long and happy life here uppon the Earth." (I left the misspellings). When I read that, I felt the full force of patriotism flow through my veins. I was able to teach a lesson on patriotism from the bottom of my soul.
In his patriarchal blessing, which was given to him through Hyrum Smith, it was stated that his name would be "commemorated unto the latest generation." I have never felt to be a more proud citizen of this country than I feel today. God Bless America!
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