Black Lives
Oh Sweet Honey,
I strive to return to you,
But I’m in a world where I cannot hide
Stuck between my humanity and my punishment,
They spit n’ do away with us,
As the bus hauls us away, chains n’ all,
Clinging in unison- in despair
Being black becomes my sentence
Oh Sweet Honey,
My face betrays my innocence , while
the blackness in my skin screams guilt,
As the truth in my voice is mistaken,
Mistaken with the cries of a wounded animal,
masked in pain, and losing will
Oh Honey,
I seem to be out of options,
As the cell becomes my birthright- and the jail my home,
I scream "Justice!", while they shout “Silence!"
They pick up arms and point in my direction,
As if my cry for help is a threat!
As if my voice should be feared…
It might be difficult for us- me and you to escape this fate.
But Honey,
Oh Sweet Honey,
Has our congregation not noticed our absence?
Do they not question all of our empty seats?
I neva’ thought I’ll be alone,
As we sang “We Can’t Be Moved”,
But it seems that I was wrong,
as the solitude in myself continuously grows.
Sweet Honey, Please explain to me
Why I can’t find my way out of this predetermined path to servitude?
I’ve been property continuously-
I’ve been dispensable historically
The security embedded in my identity,
Stripped off it’s rights and dignity.
I,
half-man, half-bastard
Of the country who has raised,
and abandoned me.
And You,
Sweet Freedom,
are the only vision I see.
Departure
I needed that last goodbye,
To safely lock you up in my memory forever.
I needed to feel your warmth beside me,
Just to remember your smell,
And the patterns of your skin.
Just to remember you were real.
I needed to hear your voice again,
If only to hear its defeat.
A selfish hope you might change your mind,
But you can't hold on to somebody that wants to go.
I needed to hug you for one final second,
Memorize the look in your eyes,
And take advantage of your presence,
Before you walked.