And More Often, I Love Being An American

Happy 4th of July! This post is to counteract the post where I talked about how occasionally I feel that Americans get unfair treatment (in their favor), especially at border crossings into Israel.

Well, it is true. But today, especially, I am proud to be an American. Last night I was watching the Mormon Tabernacle Choir's "Tribute to America" at the Parker's home (Brother Parker is the first counsellor in the branch presidency here) and I suddenly got incredibly homesick for America as the choir sang "America the Beautiful." There was a movie of rolling hills and pine forests in the background, and I realized this sublime truth: I love America.

I do. I love her freedoms, I love her quirks (ok, some of them), I love her mountains and valleys, I love her Utah :), and I love her history.

So in honor of Independence day, here are the top five things I love about America.

1-I love her freedom of religion. I love the fact that the true church of Jesus Christ--The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints--was restored in America because of the freedom of religion that was there at the time. I love being able to talk freely about my religion and not worry that the government will send my church out of the country if people start realizing the truth and convert.

2-I love her laws. I love that the police can't be bought off, that mostly the justice system is just, and that the people have a voice in the democratic process. Even though I might not like any of the candidates for president, I love that we can all vote for one of them and add our voices to the system. I love her checks and balances that help to control power hungry people. And I especially love the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence.

3-What can I say, I love her mountains. Personally I feel that nobody does mountains like Utah--how they just rise up in the midst of cities as a permanent background against the rising or setting sun. I love their presence--something much bigger than man, something that can only be created or destroyed by the elements that God controls.

4-I love the priviledges that are offered to me because I am one of her citizens. I love that I lived in Israel last year, Jordan this year, and will be living in Taiwan for the next year and a half--without any difficulty. I love that I have the chance to go to school and get an education and learn about the world. I love that I don't have to worry about a corrupt government killing off members of my family or my friends because they disagreed with the government. And I love the fact that if I want to, I have an opportunity to do almost anything in the world, if I work hard enough.

5-Finally, I love her water. This one might sound strange, but after living in the Middle East for a time, I have really come to appreciate water. I love drinking water from the tap in America without getting sick. I love washing my fruits and vegetables in tap water to get them clean, and not having to clean them after I wash them in tap water. I love that America has water systems that bring the water to your house on demand, and you don't have to keep containers of water on your roof for the house. And mostly, I love taking showers without having to turn the water off every minute to soap up and only turning it on to rinse.

Although there are many other reasons, I think these ones suffice. Really, I do love America, and I am quite excited for the three weeks I will be back within her borders before I head off to another country (I don't count the MTC as being "in America"...).