Of all nations maybe the most human,
A sprawling, shambling, striving, failing mess,
Lit up with inspiration, with ambition,
With high ideals and barefaced hungers both,
She stands atop Olympus, lofty, lonely,
With her Olympian lust, Olympian pride,
Her all-too-mortal faults, immortal story –
A shining light to others, to herself.
In letting power fall to common men,
She blazed a trail that often blazed again;
In business, innovation, art, she curled
A sturdy arm about the willing world;
And if her finest hour was in war,
Her greatest strength is what she fought it for:
The love of freedom, enterprise, and blind,
Unlooked-for progress following behind.
Let those who like debating things debate
If she is, was, or ever will be great.
She knows they never ask that question of
A country they don’t envy, fear, or love.
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