Each country has its history,
Its cultures, and its mysteries.
Some good, some bad; some pride, some shame.
Someone once asked: “What’s in a name?”
My country’s name, it means a lot –
If I don’t love England, what have I got?
This country is my motherland,
She cradled me in her two hands.
I grew up in her ancient soil,
The ground on which ancestors toiled:
The ones we’ve lost, but not forgot.
If I don’t love England, what have I got?
Her climate’s harsh, it often rains;
Of English weather, we complain
It’s never warm, but always cold.
But only England’s plaintive wold
Can hit me in the centre spot.
If I don’t love England, what have I got?
In literature, we’ve had the best,
Our poets far outshine the rest;
Too many names to name them here,
It’s enough to whisper “William Shakespeare” –
He authored all our best-loved plots.
If I don’t love England, what have I got?
Our legends and our fairytales –
Drawn from England, Ireland, Wales,
Scotland, and beyond – are famous
For dashing knights of courageous
Spirits, like bold Sir Lancelot.
If I don’t love England, what have I got?
It’s true, we’re not well-known for food.
Our forthright ways to some seem rude.
But English people have a heart,
And anyone who wants a part
Is welcome here, but hate is not.
If I don’t love England, what have I got?
I’ve been around the world and seen
Vast mountain ranges, wondrous scenes:
Vistas, sunsets, jungles, islands,
I even lived a spell in Thailand
But summer there was much too hot.
If I don’t love England, what have I got?
Our history is long, and fraught
With wars that seemed to come to naught.
But all that now is gone forever,
We only have today, together:
The English, Irish, Welsh, and Scots.
If I don’t love England, what have I got?