I love Westerns. Dances With Wolves is on the top of my list.
I saw this picture and the first thought I had was of the character Lt. John Dunbar played by Kevin Costner. In this classic western Dunbar is wounded in battle during the Civil War where the Union and Confederate armies are at a complete deadlock stalemate and nothing has happened for days to move the battle one way or another. He is about to have his leg amputated but rather than loose his leg he decides death would be better and more honorable. So he mounts a horse and rides it with his arms outstretched to be as big a target as he can right across the front of the Confederate forces hoping to be shot and killed. They all missed him but it created enough of a distraction that the Union soldiers took courage and pressed forward to win the battle. Dunbar completely heals and receives a medal of honor for his bravery. He requests an assignment on the western frontier so he can see it before it disappears. He ends up at Fort Sedgewick. Upon arrival he finds the fort abandoned and in very poor condition. Once he has unloaded his provisions and said a final farewell to his traveling companion Timmons, he hoists the Union flag.
I've often thought of that scene. Here was a man all alone in the wilderness, most assuredly surrounded by hostile Indians and uncertain of his future. Yet his duty to his country grounded him and kept him focused and driven for his first few months at his new home. He was a soldier in the Union Army who had fought for what he believed in. His blood and the blood of others was spilt in defense of a greater idea of freedom and liberty. The flag he raised represented all of the emotions of his and the others who gave their all. It served as a reminder to him of what he had just come from and it stood as a beacon to any new comers that those standards of freedom and liberty were to be fought for and defended even in the remotest reaches of the country.
Later when he goes to formally meet the Indian tribe it is the flag he takes with him as a symbol of who he was and what he represented.
In many ways we are not much different than Lt. Dunbar when it comes to the moral virtues we espouse in our faith and in the BSA. I know that many times in this world the BSA and the LDS church are like the last outpost on a far away prairie surrounded by hostiles. And our youth are prime targets.
When Timmons first saw the outpost he laughed out loud and was incredulous that Lt. Dunbar would not just turn and leave at once. It wasn't until he had a cocked pistol pointed at his face that Timmons jumped down off his wagon to help unload the provisions for Dunbar's stay. "This is my post" he said., "This is my post."
What is our post? What is your personal post? What boys are out there trying to make their way to a safe place?
The BSA and our faith as Latter-day Saints can be a safe harbor for those that are lost and wondering. But we need to have an operating base for them to join when they find it. America is a land of freedom and liberty. A place where youth and adults alike have the right and privilege to become whatever their dreams can take them with hard work, dedication, and support.
I hope that this Independence Day we will think about those that have given all they had and those that do so today to secure and preserve our liberties. May we do our part by providing safe havens for our youth to come from the turmoil of the world. Let's raise the colors of America in our hearts and souls and put into practice what we celebrate each year by helping boys achieve greatness and learn to give back to their country that has given them so much.
God bless you all!
YIS - Tom Brand
The Regal Eagle
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