A Revolutionary Prayer -- Update

In 1776 men, rifles and sharp knives in the woods of New York
Where there were small farms, wood homes and barns, 
With sheep, a cow, a horse, a porch with a handmade rocking chair 
Near a neighbor or village made by a few who came by ship
Man by man, and a woman or two who took that dangerous trip

A relative taken by a northern tribe who then lay sleeping
While she swam across a creek then found by the village men
Who were searching to find her with their rifles and torches
A precious valuable rarity a young and healthy woman
And they took her home to the village where the family began

And the men fought the British for their farms and freedom
The British from Scotland and Britain their once ancestors
To protect villages and towns built by the sweat of men and women
Though this war I wonder could it have been done without bloodshed
But England increased taxes and living was harsh, so many were dead 

So they wanted their freedom their own rules and religions
And they fought the British, the land and the Indians
Made a country with soldiers, farmers, poets and politicians
A country of travelers, explorers, inventors and greedy men
So many mistakes, so many flaws, such beauty, bravery and brawn

I pray like my Quaker ancestors that we survive
The attacks on our democracy that are streaming our lands
Driven by the lies and the forever need of power and greed
By powerful needy men -- yet we arise with every new dawn
Working with the will to strive and thrive

Copyright © Linda Milgate | Year Posted 2021

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