If we ever surrender to fallen dreams,
what might our Founding Fathers say?
Would they turn in their graves and rise up,
knowing this great nation built on the back of noble ideals is far from equal for all?
Would they applaud, or abhor what we have become?
Might they dance in delight on the seeds of democracy sown in their conviction?
Would they tend and water the constitutional green shoots so that,
the 14th may equally flourish in today’s arid land.
For uphold we must
these sacred hard-fought words.
Our gospel handed to us
so that we remain land of the free,
home of the brave.
In our faith we find action and in our action,
we keep the faith.
For we the people,
are the people
who stand for liberty,
justice and freedom.
Even though we constantly fall,
arms outstretched reaching for the light of our success.
To perform we must norm and weather the storm
through imperfect unions
of lived realities we must embrace.
For we are a nation of its people
gilded by our forebearers’ collective presumption,
not for the result of each day, but for our one day.
When we no longer
find ourselves bleeding in the shadows of our failings.
Or stand on the shores of doubt.
We will know we have accomplished each and every expectation
and we will sing from the songsheet of our collective freedom
and know that greatness is in the truth we practice,
not only in the words we say.
Dreams only falter when we stop trying to be who we are destined to be.
So again I ask,
what would our Founding Fathers say if we ever surrender?
Painting: Source
