A Grand Experiment

To a world of darkness, of brawling, of territorial fights came a moment of clarity, dawned a new light A grand experiment, daring beyond all comprehension which could have exacerbated underlying tensions But it found firm footing, and despite imperfections there arose a new nation after seven years of insurrection A place where a man could upgrade his station in life and a revolution's pen was as sharp as a hunter's knife A land to roam, to explore, to cultivate A land of mountains, forests, and plains so great With a wilderness untamed, and where rivers breathed free Where you could assert you, and I could become me Yet alack and alas, the land's bright promise has faded midst darkness and brawling and descendants become jaded And now America's a nation, very much like the others where no man is your brother and sons turn on their mothers