I want to be Canadian
To illustrate the continental divide
With everyone else\
To own the Rockies
And never sell them out
I want that Canada that grew me up
Without the introspective biases
Of leering south
In the retrospective shadow of Dominion
And all that fat\
I want the Maple Leaf to mean more than that
A trading card for cheap vacations
In Spain, winters in Florida
No imprint to remain\
Winter is our real ace
In the hole
The hole card is green
Our relationship to value added
In that colour
In the million acres of snow Voltaire let go\
Our very open door
Natural gas, h2o and hydro
Tax credits that contribute conservation\
Of vistas oh so physical
Meaning transcendental
This history is magic
A story of rivers that flow
Free trade
The vital strength of indigenous
Peoples search for a common goal
This dance around
The Family Compact
Galvanized by aging veterans
Younger men unclaimed lying under
Europes ground neglected and disrespected
Their glory still unbound
Canada is to be measured by
How many doctors we provide
against the commercial tide
how many souls can save themselves
with all that we provide
with or without a Gods blessing
we are a people moved from
coast to coast to coast
a spirit born to pursue freedoms many ghosts
with economics balanced
between the castle and the lands
without a Hollywood
some grand design
a masters plan\
some great divide
let us go laughing by ourselves
invitations found in granites ground
sprouting spring
this seasons joy grounding us
in the refracting glint of
Decembers timeless lurch to snow.
