01 February 2015

The Love Project



*Writer's Note: Full disclosure, I love this month. Generally, I always enjoy February. You've got Black History, unlimited chocolates, and I can wear red lipstick every day; but this year February feels even more special. Look at that month. All the days perfectly aligned and full. There's even a Friday the 13th in there for good measure. And because I'm so enamoured with this particular month, I'll be writing one "love" poem a day. Now L-O-V-E can mean lots of different things so I'll be exploring all of it. In honor of the Superbowl (and my Patriots being in it) my first poem is going to be about patriotism. 







#1: 

I am a patriot, I love my country
I love it so much I occasionally over look 
It's imperfections
I survey them, judging and questioning
Until I'm moved to action
Because my love is not unconditional
My love must be earned
My love is dependent on my country fulfilling its promise
Yes, my country is young
But it is no longer a teenager stumbling through 
Indecision and living off intention
My country has to live up to the ideals it set forth in its inception

We hold these truths to be self-evident, 
that all men are created equal
How beautiful those words sound
Imagine the beauty of their fruition 
Yet I remain a patriot

Despite a country that often makes me feel like
My womaness, my blackness, my intelligence
Is unwanted
Despite a society that tells me
I am less than and I have to work twice as
To be a citizen
Because this is my country too
And if I have to live up to these ideals
So do you, my country

I am a patriot
And I love my country enough
To want it to be great 

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