Living in a city devoid of nature's gifts,
I'd escape to the country for a respite;
Here the air was supple and fresh,
lingering softly through the sunset.

I'd skip stones into the lake of emeralds,
where the fish were at home to swim;
And deer would gather for a sweet drink,
before the afternoon daylight became dim.

A long trek to mountains ahead of me,
rescued my mind through mystical places;
It's as if I were miles away from the city,
while I visited these heavenly spaces.

Rushing waters from a nearby waterfall,
awakened me to the wonders of nature;
Their sparkle jumped from stone to stone,
and I watched like a curious wanderer.

This entire adventure made clear to me,
as I rolled out my bedding to sleep;
These picturesque visions would remain alive,
as treasured memories I would always keep.

We must accept that not all of us,
Will always completely agree,
For we are all different and unique.
We are not all parts of the same old tree.
We may sometimes be criticised,
In many thoughts and actions that we do,
But all the decisions that we make,
In our own minds should be true.

May the American poets, at Hello Poetry enjoy reading the following lyrical poem.  

The Ragged Old Flag
Written by Johnny Cash

I walked through a county courthouse square
On a park bench, an old man was sittin' there.
I said, "Your old court house is kinda run down,
He said, "Naw, it'll do for our little town".
I said, "Your old flag pole is leaned a little bit,
And that's a ragged old flag you got hangin' on it".
He said, "Have a seat", and I sat down,
"Is this the first time you've been to our little town"
I said, "I think it is"
He said "I don't like to brag, but we're kinda proud of that ragged old flag"

You see, we got a little hole in that flag there
When Washington took it across the Delaware.
And It got powder burned the night Francis Scott Key sat watching it
Writing "Say Can You See"
It got a bad rip in New Orleans, with Packingham & Jackson
Tugging at it's seams.
And it almost fell at the Alamo
Beside the Texas flag,
But she waved on though.
She got cut with a sword at Chancellorsville,
And she got cut again at Shiloh Hill.
There was Robert E. Lee and Beauregard and Bragg,
And the south wind blew ******* that ragged old flag

On Flanders Field in World War I
She got a big hole from a Bertha Gun
She turned blood red in World War II
She hung limp, and low, a time or two
She was in Korea, Vietnam, she went where she was sent
By her Uncle Sam
She waved from our ships upon the briny foam
And now they've about quit wavin' back here at home
In her own good land here She's been abused
She's been burned, dishonored, denied an' refused
And the government for which she stands
Has scandalized throughout out the land
And she's getting thread bare, and she's wearin' thin
But she's in good shape, for the shape she's in
Cause she's been through the fire before
And I believe she can take a whole lot more

So we raise her up every morning
And we take her down every night,
We don't let her touch the ground,
And we fold her up right.
On a second thought
I do like to brag
'Cause I'm mighty proud of that ragged old flag