booksartyoume

'Pledge of Allegiance of an adolescent' timothy r gates, 8/02/2008

Pledge of Allegiance of an adolescent,
so here we are,
a nation, supposed,
this time around, a little over two-hundred
(less than a third of the present land is one-hundred)
those before this, also immigrants,
pilgrims from another time and place,
liking to think of themselves as indigenous,
no more than the rest of us,
Irish, Germans, Italians, French, Spanish, Russians,
Arabs, Israelis, English, Japanese, Chinese,
Icelanders, Canadians,
and more of course
(if offended that you're not listed, get over it,
it is my memory's prejudice at work, here)
... and,
Mexicans,
they to, immigrant pilgrims from another place.
I Pledge Allegiance to what?
Dirt?
Refuse?
Notions?
Ideas?
Whose dirt?
Whose refuse?
Whose notions?
Whose ideas?
Federalist Papers,
ingenious sales management,
a nation is born.
Pledge Allegiance to the Flag
of the United States of America,
like standing for the
Star-Spangled Banner,
because
Our Flag was still there.
Bombs bursting in air,
yes we still celebrate,
with all the indigenous peoples of this Earth,
all, like adolescents,
proclaiming,
'I can beat you up!'
Hurrah!