My Heritage Poem by Randy McClave

As I open up my book and turn the page
It reflects to me exactly who I am,
As I read more about my own family heritage
Now I know why I care, and why I give a damn,
I now know where I inherited my accent
And also much of my dignity and my pride,
My past has suddenly become my present
That comes from blood, and my forefathers that died,
My legacy came to me by reason of my birth
It became my soul's most important right,
I became the receptacle of my family’s true worth
Which also includes sadness and death and delight.
True I was born a proud and free American
But, my heritage does not begin just there,
I am also a patriots great, great, great grandson
Whose surname I will always proudly wear,
Finally I know and understand where comes my rage
And my temper and my stubbornness and my honor,
In my blood and my soul I can feel the courage
That had left many of my family members a goner,
My blood it still flows strong in many countries
As I am part of a very noble and proud clan,
In the mighty forest we are the sheltering trees
That is where my heritage really began.

Randy L. McClave