By Travis

I am from barbed wire and wet grass,

From diesel fuel and axle grease.

I am from the deep, rich scent of horseflesh after a rain.

I am from the feeling you get when you first realize that there is no going back.

I am from the gravel in the roads, the dust in your eyes, the rocks in the path.

I am from the grassfire’s heat and the winter’s spiritless cold.

I am from the anguish of loss, the tears wept for the dead, the smiling remembrance of those gone,

Whose absence is just as painful now as when they first left.

I am from Chuck, from Virginia, from Debbie and Jack,

From Great Uncle LeRoy who died for "honor and country".

I am from the homegrown tomatoes that succumbed to the early frost-

From the pumpkins and watermelons the horses got into.

I am from pasta, pizza, stir-fry, and sauerkraut and sausage (the real kind, not that sweet trash that nobody eats).

I am from the sweet corn and peaches, the sour gooseberries we found in the woods,

The mulberries on the trees, the wild plums on the game trails.

I am from Simpson vs. The State of California, Bush vs. Clinton, Gore vs. Bush,

And always, good vs. evil.

I am from "We pledge allegiance," "I have not yet begun to fight," and "Hasta La Vista, Baby"

I am from the sci-fi disasters, the action-adventures, the horror-slashers.

I am from the "shut up or I will…s",

The "you think you’re funny, don’t you?’s",

And the "What in the H*** do you think you’re doing’s?"

I am from the endless stretches of highway between here and nowhere,

From the winding, forgotten gravel roads which seem to go on forever.

I am from sorrow, from apple pie, from Jack Daniel’s, from farming, from video games;

From everything that is good or bad about life.