I am your Flag...
I have been kicked, trampled, burned, and shot full of holes.
I have fought battles, but I prefer the untroubled
air of a world at peace.
I am your Flag.
I represent the freedom of humanity, and I shall fly high,
thundering in silence for the whole world to hear.
My gentle rustling in the breeze sounds out the warning to
all who would bury me forever that below stands a population
dedicated to liberty.
For those who have perished for my right to freedom of flight,
for those who will die, and indeed for those who will live,
I stand as a symbol of freedom-loving people.
I have been carried into battle in faraway lands,
always for the cause of freedom.
I am blood-stained, torn, and many times
wearied and saddened by the thousands who have paid
the supreme sacrifice.
Do not let it all be for nothing.
Tell me the brave has died for a worthwhile cause.
Be proud of what I represent, and display
me for all to see.
Whether you call me "Old Glory," Stars and Stripes,"
or "Star Spangled Banner,"
I shall fly forever as a symbol of your
freedom, as I did for your ancestors,
and I shall for your heirs.
~By James M. Fillmore~
June 14, 2001 marks the 22nd anniversary of the first National Pause
for the Pledge of Allegiance. Please take a few moments at 7 p.m.
to recite the Pledge. The current words, adapted over the years from
the original written in 1892 by Francis Bellamy, are:
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