阅读下面文章，基于该短文写出一篇60词左右的内容概要。
Every country in the world
has a flag. A flag is a piece of cloth with a picture or pattern on it. The
flag is a symbol that stands for the country. It is a custom in many places for
people to fly or hang a flag. The flag tells something about the country and
its culture. This may be about its land, its history, or the things that the
people do there.
Many flags have patterns of
stripes (条纹). The flag of Italy has a
green stripe, a white stripe and a red stripe. Each stripe tells something
about Italy. The white stripe is symbol of Italy's snowy mountains. Some flags show
pictures. The flag of Canada has a picture of a red maple (枫叶) leaf, which is a symbol of the maple trees in Canada. The
Mexican flag has both a pattern of stripes and a picture. The picture shows an
eagle eating a snake. This picture comes from a very old Mexican story.
A flag may also tell about
a country's past. The American flag is called the Stars and Stripes. It has
pattern of fifty stars and thirteen stripes. The fifty stars are a symbol of
the fifty states in the country and the thirteen stripes are a symbol of the
country's first thirteen colonies (殖民地).
However, a flag may be a
symbol of a group, a school or an event like the Olympics. The flag of the
Olympics shows five rings of different colors that connect. Each ring is a
symbol for a part of the world that joins in the Olympics. The Red Cross is a
group that helps people who are in trouble. If a person sees the Red Cross
flag, which has a red cross against a white background, he knows he can ask for
help. People may fly a flag as a custom on a holiday. Children's Day in Japan
is a holiday when the country wishes for children's happiness. It is a custom
on this day to fly a flag with a picture of a fish.
