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Quick! The Drum!
By
C.S. Bezas
Patriots around the world make a difference for their countries, their communities, their families. This simple Family Home Evening lesson teaches children the importance of patriotism and love for others. Time for some FHE Fun!
FHE Fun!
Opening Song: #338 America the Beautiful
Opening Prayer: By Invitation.
Devotional: Devotionals are quick and sweet opportunities to share a few verses that held meaning during private scripture study from the previous week. Anyone who cares to share may do so during this spontaneous portion of FHE.
[NOTE: Remember that as parents, the Lord will inspire you as you thoughtfully and prayerfully prepare for each week's Family Home Evening lesson. Your children need your insights, your perspectives, and your love. We at Meridian Magazine offer the following lesson on patriotism. Feel free to use our offering or to select your own approach to this important topic.]
Story Time:
Once upon a time there was a simple girl named Rebecca Bates. She and her family lived in a little cottage, white as stone, near a neighboring lighthouse. It sat on a narrow piece of land that stretched like a finger into the sea. Her father was the lighthouse-keeper and made sure its light burned bright each night. (1)
One day, Rebecca and her sister Abigail sat alone by the sea with waves lapping at their feet. To their surprise, off in the distance, a ship appeared. Only this wasn't a friendly ship. For you see, Rebecca and her country were at war with Britain and this ship was a British warship!
Open-mouthed, Rebecca and Abigail watched as the ship came closer and closer to their homeland. They scrambled to their feet, kicking off the sand, and began to run to the nearby lighthouse.
Stop here. Explain that Rebecca Bates was a real girl who lived in Massachusetts about 200 years ago. Remind the children that today Britain ( England ) is a friend to many countries and a friend to the United States . But ask the children how they might have felt if they were Rebecca. What would they do?
Continue the story:
Once the girls reached the lighthouse, they braced against its heavy door, heaving it open. Then they dashed up the stairs, trying not to slip on the uneven stones. Finally! They arrived at the top of the lighthouse. They were safely hidden inside its tower, but what could they do?
Rebecca could barely breathe. Abigail clutched at her arm. Helpless, they stared out the windowed opening of the tower.
“What shall we do?” whispered Abigail.
Rebecca could only shake her head as they watched the distant red-coated soldiers disembark from the British warship. She imagined that soon her entire village would be burned to the ground.
Stop the story for a moment to read the following quote from President Ezra Taft Benson, shared in General Conference in 1979:
“The Lord has declared this ‘a day of warning, and not a day of many words' (D&C 63:58). My message is a witness and warning about some of the evils which threaten America —a land I love with all my heart. There are other countries with this same problem. You who have seen these dangers in the land you love will have a deep feeling for what I will say” (Ezra Taft Benson, “A Witness and a Warning,” Ensign, Nov 1979, 31).
Ask the family to think on what the Lord expects good citizens everywhere to do for their beloved countries. What kind of sacrifice is required? Allow sharing. Then ask, “Depending on Rebecca and Abigail's choices, how important will they be to their country? Why do brave people need to step forward when their country is in danger?”
Rebecca remembered a soldier's drum downstairs in the lighthouse. It had needed repairing and at times, her father busied himself with small tasks while at the lighthouse. Last night was just such a time.
“The drum!” Rebecca cried and took off running down the stairs. Abigail was quick to follow. Finally they reached the base of the stairs and stumbled towards the room that held muskets, ammunition, a fife (3) and one small drum.
Once inside, Rebecca shouted, “Quick. Quick!” She tossed the drum at her sister and then scrambled to pick up the fife. Abigail stood, her hands shaking as they held the drum. “Can't you see, Abigail,” Rebecca said. “It's our only choice. Make them think our army is coming!” And with that, Rebecca turned and pushed through the heavy door.
Share with the family that Rebecca and Abigail ran toward the British soldiers, who by that time had already set one merchant's boat on fire. The villagers' food was being destroyed!
Ducking behind bushes, the girls played “Yankee Doodle” and other American army marching songs. The soldiers heard the songs from a distance and thought the Americans were preparing to attack. Assuming they soon would be surrounded by armed men, the British soldiers fled back to their boat and left the harbor as quickly as possible. Twenty-year-old Rebecca and sixteen-year-old Abigail had averted a great tragedy with their quick thinking and with their bravery. (2)
Application:
What can be learned from Rebecca and Abigail's courage? How important were they for their village at that moment? What can be done as a family to help each member become equally as valuable for their great country? What do the Articles of Faith say about patriotism?
Here are a few suggestions given by our church leaders to guide us in appropriate forms of patriotism:
- Study the United States Constitution as a family. Know what it teaches. Understand its inspired principles. And then be prepared, as we've been asked by church leaders, to lift and defend it as an emblem of inspiration and freedom to the world. (If we don't know what it contains, how can we do any of this? Thus, the importance of reading a little at a time from this straightforward document.)
Here are Elder Dallin H. Oaks' words about the Constitution: “ Not long after I began to teach law, an older professor asked me a challenging question about Latter-day Saints' belief in the United States Constitution. Earlier in his career he had taught at the University of Utah College of Law. There he met many Latter-day Saint law students. ‘They all seemed to believe that the Constitution was divinely inspired,' he said, ‘but none of them could ever tell me what this meant or how it affected their interpretation of the Constitution.' I took that challenge personally, and I have pondered it for many years” (Dallin H. Oaks, “The Divinely Inspired Constitution,” Ensign , Feb 1992, 68).
- Begin this week by reading a few paragraphs each evening from that talk by Elder Oaks. Perhaps then, beginning next week, study one paragraph of the Constitution each night before family prayer. Make a game of memorizing and quizzing each other on the Bill of Rights! Here is an easy link.
- Speak out for principles of freedom and righteousness. Be willing to defend that which is good and right, no matter what others might do or say. Remember the quote often attributed to Edmund Burke: “Evil triumphs when good men [and good women and families] do nothing.”
- Know that the Lord blesses all righteous efforts. Study Alma 48:11-17 as a family:
Testify that the Lord needs willing servants to do his work in the latter days, just as Rebecca and Abigail served their countrymen in 1814. As we turn to Him with righteous desires and a willingness to help, He will guide us throughout our lives—even in decisions that must be made quickly.
Closing Song: #162 I Will Be Valiant
Closing Prayer: By Invitation.
Refreshments: This Pound Cake recipe is a variation of the old-fashioned Colonial approach to cakes. They used to make these desserts by using a pound of everything. Have fun making this dessert that goes back 200 years and more (don't worry—this recipe does not use a pound of everything!).
- To see a picture of the actual lighthouse from this story, and to read the historical background of Rebecca and Abigail Bates' adventure, click here.
- Story retold, but based on Mara L. Pratt's, “The American Army of Two,” from American History Stories You Never Read in School…But Should Have , Volume II: We the People, pp. 50-54.
- To see a picture of an old-fashioned fife and drum, click here.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES:
President Boyd K. Packer's talk, “The Test,” is an excellent read about the early Saints' patriotism and how the Lord steadies His children during troubled times. As President Packer says so well, “ …we will stay on course. We will anchor ourselves as families and as a church to these principles and ordinances.”
Struggling with your teens? C.S. Bezas' book is an essential help for parents and youth leaders. Powerful Tips for Powerful Teachers teaches you how to create powerful change. Visit your local LDS bookstore or get your copy online here.
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